


Innamorato

by ladyfeather



Category: Finder no Hyouteki | Finder Series
Genre: M/M, Yamane Akano
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-13
Updated: 2014-07-13
Packaged: 2018-02-08 15:35:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 9
Words: 38,527
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1946613
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ladyfeather/pseuds/ladyfeather
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kei has been a cold, emotionless being for nine years, but something about Koh is melting his icy exterior.</p><p>Things to know:<br/>This story is about growing feelings between Kei Kirishima and Koh Fujioka (my naming since he has no known last name) and bases Kirishima's character on Yamane Ayano's drawings of him in the books. He is not shown often but when he is there are no smiles. You will need to forget everything you've read in other fan fictions. He is a cold person, wrapped up only in the effectiveness of his work. The reason for this coldness is something that will never leave him, an event that can never be forgotten. We'll explore that.</p><p>And what is the reason behind his tight bond with Asami?</p><p>Timeline starts a few years after PIA and has two major flashbacks. There is a side story about Takaba and Asami. Aki's friends know of and accept his relationship with Asami. But things aren't as happy as they seem between the two....</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Introduction

**Author's Note:**

  * For [PrincessofTor](https://archiveofourown.org/users/PrincessofTor/gifts).



> Noted characters are property of Yamane Ayano other than my original character. She graciously allows us to play with them.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kei has been a cold, emotionless being for nine years, but something about Koh is melting his icy exterior.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentioned characters other than my original character are the property of Yamane Ayano. She graciously allows us to play with them.

INNAMORATO

Innamorato masculine (plural innamorati) feminine innamorata  
Italian [Noun]  
lover, boyfriend, sweetheart  
This song by Dean Martin started the thought process for the story  
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3zA7dgQ2dU

Introduction

Kei pressed deep into the sensuous body below him, so lean and supple, again and again hitting the hidden pleasure  
point. The young man's olive eyes looked up at him, filled with love, and his body was pressing back with need and eager desire. Kei stroked the wavy black hair as both moaned with the pleasure; fingers then found fingers; they intertwined and clenched. As they both released two voices spoke one word – Innamorato.

Kei woke with a start, perspiration beading on his body. It had seemed so real, he so wanted it to be real, but it was only a reminder of a long past event. A sorrowful sigh escaped his lips as a single tear trickled down to join the moisture already coating his skin.

TBC


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kei has been a cold, emotionless being for nine years, but something about Koh is melting his icy exterior.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentioned characters other than my original character are the property of Yamane Ayano. She graciously allows us to play with them.

**Chapter 1**  
  
Kirishima stifled a yawn as he stretched his aching muscles. It had been a long day and the work had been mentally difficult, but the task was finally complete. He had spent the past ten hours checking and rechecking his data to make sure he hadn't missed a thing, and he was thoroughly satisfied that he had assembled all the documentation that Asami needed to prove that one of his more trusted suppliers had been helping himself to a few extras here and there. He gathered the supplier's doctored books and placed them in the safe along with the accurate set of books, the flash drive, and several notebooks filled with his notations where the inconsistencies occurred; he took all the precautions needed to not allow them to be taken and destroyed. Although destroyed is probably what the dealer would be once Asami saw the extent of his sticky fingers. The supplier may insist that the figures don't lie, but both he and Asami knew very well that liars can figure.  
  
He had worked long and hard for the past twelve days, preferring to work here in the quiet office suite situated on the same floor as Asami's penthouse rather than at the Sion headquarters where there were too many distractions and too much noise to concentrate efficiently. Allowing a few hours in the morning for the more mundane paperwork he had, the rest of the day was dedicated to the major task at hand. He was looking forward to some nice quiet time off; Asami had promised that once he had everything in order he could take a few days off to unwind. Although Asami could be quite the dictator when it came to getting things done, he also acknowledged when a job was well done and offered the appropriate reward.  
  
Out of habit he knocked before entering the penthouse suite, even though he knew that no one was home at the moment. Using his personal key he opened the door and headed straight for Asami's private study. After leaving copies of the incriminating files on Asami's desk he returned to his office, straightened up what little clutter he had on his desk, and then double-checked the safe to make sure it was properly locked. Just as he was about to turn off the light he heard the sounds of a heated discussion issuing from the elevator shaft. That could only mean one thing – Akihito was on his way up, and it was against his will. Again. The calm baritone coloring the background noise also meant that Asami was with him. With a deep sigh he placed his jacket back on the hanger, seated himself at his desk, and waited to see if there was anything that would be needed of him before he could escape home.  
  
"I don't care how rough a day you had, I was supposed to meet Koh a half hour ago. We've had this planned for weeks, dammit! Bastard! Koh really needs a break and I was gonna treat him to a great night on the town. Don't you have friends that you spend time with? Oh, that's right, your type doesn't have friends, just business associates that make money for you."  
  
As they exited the elevator Asami pulled Takaba to him, holding him close. Focusing his attention on Takaba's face while gently holding his chin in his hand Asami stated, "You should keep quiet and save that voice; you'll need it. And besides, you'll tire out that sweet mouth of yours and I have plans for it later."  
  
Kirishima mentally shook his head. Where did Asami get all that stamina to keep up this pace? This was the third time this week that he abducted Takaba, and he knew that this time it wasn't because he took photos of the wrong people. He was always notified when the brat overstepped the boundaries Asami-sama had set for him and he'd already done that once this week. And Takaba, for all the whining and complaining he did, didn't seem to mind the abduction judging by the sounds that came from the bedroom for hours on end. _I just wish they'd wait until I'm not around. There are times when I can't bear to remember…._  
  
They had reached his door now, and Asami turned to ask Kirishima if there was anything important to handle at the moment since he was still in the office. While Asami tightened his hold on a squirming Takaba Kirishima replied that he had completed the paperwork concerning the supplier in question and left the required documents on his desk. He also stated that nothing else had come up that required his immediate attention.  
  
"Good work, thank you. I'll attend to the supplier matter in the morning. Now I think you deserve some time off. I don't want to see you here for the next two days unless I call you in. Understand?"  
  
"Yes, thank you Asami-sama, I understand." Asami then entered his penthouse, Takaba complaining loudly all the way, while Kirishima once again reached for his jacket and finally got to turn off the light and leave.  
  
As he exited the elevator on the garage level he realized how late is was; no light shone through the small windows at the top of the walls. A quick glance at his watch said 8:47. In terms of going out on the town it wasn't too late, especially since it was a Saturday night. Maybe a drink before heading home would help relax him a bit.  
  
As he walked toward his car, Takaba's words came back to him. He was supposed to meet with Koh. Of Takaba's friends he liked Koh the best. He was a hard worker, like himself, and only seemed to let himself relax around Akihito and Takato. He acted a bit childish at times, but he had a hidden strength and a great sense of humor, something he himself seemed to lack. The three young men were almost inseparable at times. Usually when they went out partying it was the three of them. Takato must have had another reason to stay home tonight – perhaps he and his wife were going out by themselves.  
  
Kirishima had been included in many of the observation and security details that were instituted for Takaba's safety. He knew every place he frequented with even the slightest regularity; all the stores that carried his favorite flavors of Pocky, the camera shops where he bought his film, the markets where he bought his groceries, and even the boutiques where he bought his clothes, although that wasn't very often.  
  
He also knew where he and his friends lived and all the places that they hung out. Their favorite bar was a drivable distance away and the most likely place where they were to meet; perhaps he should stop by and, if Koh was there, let him know that Takaba wouldn't be coming. That is if he is still waiting. Takaba did say that they were to meet some time ago. He'd give it a try since he had nothing else to do, and if he didn't find Koh he could at least have that drink before heading home.

#=#=#=#=#

  
Kou was getting fidgety; Akihito was late – again – and it was over an hour that he had been waiting. He wasn't sure if he should continue to wait for him, try calling him, or just go home. They had planned this night out for weeks, and Koh was in dire need of some serious distraction from work. It wasn't often that they could mesh their schedules and plan to do things, and it was disheartening that the plans had fallen through.  
  
 _I wonder if he got a hot tip for a job again? That usually detours him from any plans he makes. Damn, it's no fun drinking by myself, and I was really looking forward to a fun evening with Aki – he always cheers me up. He could have at least given me a call. I guess I'll just pick up something to eat on the way home and maybe a DVD to pass the time._  
  
Just as he was getting ready to leave he spotted a familiar face coming in the door. _Glasses guy, oh, what's his name? Kirishima I think, yeah, Kei Kirishima. Does that man ever smile? But what's he doing here? Ah, I hope nothing happened to Aki! Asami would know before I would – oh please let him be alright!_  
  
At that same moment Kirishima turned and started toward him. He also noticed the worried expression on Koh's face. _The young man probably thinks that I bring bad news. I guess in a way I do, but not the kind he's envisioning._  
  
Kirishima moved to stand at the table, just in front of Koh. "Fujioka-san, please pardon my intrusion. I felt that I should inform you that Takaba-san will not be able to keep his scheduled appointment with you. A more pressing matter has come up that he must attend to promptly."  
  
Koh couldn't express how relieved he felt knowing that nothing had happened to his friend. "In other words, Asami grabbed him first and is in the process of plowing his ass right now. Thanks for letting me know; I won't wait around any longer. When he's with Asami…."  
  
Assessing the disappointed look on Koh's face Kirishima knew he needed to attempt to cheer him up a bit. "That's a rather crude way of putting it, but yes, that's fairly accurate. I left before they began their evening's activities. I do know that Takaba-san was very distressed that he could not keep his promise to you." Kirishima paused, as if he was trying to decide what to say next.  
  
Koh looked keenly at the man standing in front of him. It was rather late to be carrying messages. "Are you just getting done work? It's rather late isn't it? I don't see you guys working a 9 to 5 shift, but this seems a bit more than an average day, especially with it being a Saturday. Do you ever get time off for mental health days? Working for Asami you have to need them more often than the normal person."  
  
 _Oh, if you only knew,_ thought Kirishima, and decided to give him a simple reason for being so late – no details, just basic facts.  
  
"I had a very important assignment to finish before I could leave. Asami-sama insisted that it be completed as soon as possible, so I've been on overtime for the past twelve days trying to finish the project, which I have finally completed. And yes, I do get some time off. In fact I have the next two days off, barring any emergencies that crop up in the meantime."  
  
Kirishima frowned as his stomach growled. "Please excuse my ill-mannered stomach. I do believe the last meal I had was a late brunch, and if I recall correctly, this establishment doesn't serve any type of food."  
  
A thought blossomed in his mind, and he decided to follow it. "Would you possibly join me in a late dinner? It's the least I can offer as reimbursement for Asami-sama's unexpected plans interfering with yours. There is an excellent restaurant very close to here that I frequent when I have the time. I would enjoy having some company after being sequestered in the office for over a week looking at nothing but numbers."  
  
Koh just had to laugh. Kirishima looked so serious when he asked him to dinner that he felt there was no way he could say 'no' to the man. And it might be interesting to learn a few things about this enigma of a man. He'd seen him around Aki many times, but there had never been any interaction with him. The man had a very cold, calculated aura that seemed to envelop him. The man was all business; even Aki said that he had never seen him smile, or even look like he might be happy. But tonight he looked and acted a bit more human.  
  
Grabbing his jacket Koh stood and moved to stand beside Kirishima. "Sure, why not? And just call me Koh. I've been stood up by a friend again so I'm free for the evening and I'm hungry too. Which way are we headed?"  
  
Kirishima tapped out a message on his cell phone before ushering Koh out of the bar and toward the garage where he parked.

#=#=#=#=#

  
When they arrived at the restaurant Koh was surprised. "Wow, this place is fantastic! Are you sure I'm dressed well enough to enter?" Koh had worn a plain ivory pullover sweater and a pair of dark grey Docker slacks. Most of the patrons wore suits and business dress clothing. Even Kirishima was in a suit, though truthfully he had never seen him in anything but a suit. He wondered if the man even owned anything other than suits. He mentally visualized closet after closet filled with white shirts and black suits and snickered to himself.  
  
"You needn't worry. They aren't strict on dress code, and since you are my guest there will not be a problem." Kirishima moved on ahead and entered the restaurant while Koh meekly followed behind.  
  
Kirishima was greeted by the manager and after a short conversation with Kirishima he escorted them personally to a table. They were seated at a table set in a quiet corner where one could see all that was going on around them but had a bit more privacy than the others in the restaurant. Koh had the feeling that this was Kirishima's personal table when he came here to dine.  
  
The earlier comment about being his guest made him wonder exactly how much power Kirishima had. He knew that he didn't fit the general description of a financial manager, private secretary, or any other title he could think of, nor did he convey that type of aura. Even with the nerdy glasses he gave the appearance of someone not to mess with, and he had the feeling that the suit hid a very well-toned body. It seemed that anyone associated with Asami was treated like glass; all precautions were made not to annoy, aggravate, or insult those associates. He'd seen it all too often with Aki, and now here with Kirishima.  
  
They had no sooner been seated when the waiter came over to take their order, offering his opinion of the choice of the day. Both decided that the special, Kaiseki ryori[1], was what they wanted and the waiter bowed and left, only to return in a few minutes with individual bottles of sake and cups.  
  
In proper tradition Kirishima poured the sake for Koh, and Koh did likewise for Kirishima. Upon tasting the sake he remarked, "This is excellent sake, very good. With this quality of sake the meal just has to be something extraordinary."  
  
Kirishima replied, "That is why I dine here when I can. They have the most excellent sake and cuisine that I've found anywhere in Tokyo, and at a very reasonable price."  
  
Kirishima removed his glasses and cleaned them before replacing them. "While we're waiting for our meal I'd like to ask something of you. Please, do not be angry with Takaba-san, he really had intended to keep his appointment with you, and was even looking forward to it. It's just that Asami-sama had different plans for him, and once Asami-sama sets his mind to do something he will do it. He is a very strong willed person, and almost impossible to dissuade."  
  
Koh nodded, "Yeah, from what I've heard from Aki and what I gathered on my own, I can see Aki has no control over what Asami wants to do with him or even when. It just bothers me that we didn't get to spend the time together that we had planned. I'm not saying we had important stuff to do, just personal stuff. We've been friends for a long time and sometimes you need that friend to lend an ear."  
  
Kirishima looked at Koh seriously, then cleared his throat. "I may not be a friend, but I can be a confidant should that be what you require. My discretion is beyond reproach, and in my line of employment it is a mandatory requirement."  
  
Koh smiled and chuckled. "Yeah, I bet. How many people could you take out just by mentioning their names? No, never mind, forget I said that; it was just a rhetorical question. I like living, thank you."  
  
Kirishima smirked, much like Asami did. "Wise choice, especially since I'm beginning to like your company. I don't think I would like to see you try to take on Asami-sama."  
  
The statement left Koh with a confused look on his face. But then the conversation turned to more conventional subjects; politics, the economy, soccer results, the latest causes to stand up for before Kirishima turned to see the waiter approaching with their dinner. The dinner consisted of enough dishes to almost completely cover the table, leaving little room to assemble a plate.  
  
The men ceased their conversation in order to turn their full attention to the delicious meal spread before them. Koh had eaten in some very fine places with his business contacts, even at Club Sion with Aki, but this was in a league of its own. Never had he tasted foods cooked like this. The spices were outstanding, and all the dishes, though different, blended nicely to create a unique flavor.  
  
After the dinner setting was cleared they were served tea, which they both were enjoying at the moment. Kirishima lowered his cup and looked toward Koh.  
  
"Takaba-san mentioned that you were a bit stressed at the moment. Is your work that demanding?"  
  
Koh glanced at Kirishima, surprised that he knew that. But then, the people associated with Asami always seemed to appear when he was with Aki. He had a good idea why, but he wasn't about to risk his neck to voice it.  
  
Kirishima, seeing the look on Koh's face, decided that he needed to explain how he knew this. "When Takaba-san was protesting his being unable to meet with you he mentioned that you were in dire need of some recreational time to unwind."  
  
Koh nodded. "Yeah, I've got a pretty heavy project going right now; it's going to take about six months to complete. Kinda like the one you just finished, it's something that has to be done perfectly, but the people I'm doing the work for are getting impossible in their demands. I keep telling them that some of the details they want aren't compatible with other elements of their design. It takes dozens of attempts to finally get it to sink in that they can't do that. I'll be so glad when this project ends, but it's going to run for another three months before I'm free of them, maybe longer if they like my work and want to hire me for another project."  
  
The stress showed on Koh's face. The dinner had relieved a bit of it, but the talk about the job brought back memories of the aggravation he was enduring with his latest clients.  
  
"Some people don't realize how annoying they can be, and there is not much one can do other than breathe deep and count to ten. And you can always be overbooked should they wish to hire you for another aggravating project. Do you have a co-worker you don't like too much that you could send them to?"  
  
Koh laughed heartily. "I do have a co-worker who's almost as annoying as the clients. It would serve him right to have to deal with people who have the same type of personality. I think I'll do that, should they want another project done. Thanks, Kirishima-san. And thank you for the dinner. I was just about to leave and pick up something at the store before going home when you arrived."  
  
"You are most welcome, Koh. I'm glad that I could cheer you up at least a bit. I'll let Asami-sama know that you enjoyed the dinner – he will be paying for it."  
  
That surprised Koh. "Won't you get in trouble for this? I mean, I don't want you getting yelled at for this…."  
  
"Don't worry about that. I will let Asami-sama know that it was his actions that caused me to do this, and he will have to agree with me. I do have a little control over some of our interactions." Kirishima sighed, "Not much, but I don't have to sweat the small stuff."  
  
They had finished the tea and were readying to leave the restaurant. Kirishima turned to Koh and said, "I'm afraid that I'm not very good at entertaining people; most of my time is spent at Club Sion, and I know that is not quite the type of place you young men would spend time. So is there anywhere you wish to go? I can take you there before I head home."  
  
"After that fine meal I'm in the mood for a nap. Thank you for bringing me here; it's a place I'd like to come back to sometime. I think I'll just head home and watch some TV or a DVD. I can catch the train to get home; you don't need to bother taking me."  
  
Kirishima shook his head. "No, it's no bother. The ride will be more pleasant than the train, and we can talk some more."  
  
Koh's laughter make Kirishima feel better. "Yes, you're right about it being more pleasant. Thank you again. I do believe you know the way – you've had to get Aki a few times from my place."  
  
With a slight smile Kirishima answered, "Like the back of my hand."  
  
As Koh started to exit the car when they arrived at his apartment Kirishima hesitatingly spoke up, "It's rare I get time off to do things like tonight, and I enjoyed having dinner with you. Perhaps sometime in the future when I have free time we could meet and do this again, I mean if you wouldn't mind having dinner with a boring old man.…."  
  
Koh smiled, "Kirishima, I wouldn't mind at all. Just give me a call whenever you get the time. And you're not an old man, and definitely not boring."  
  
"I don't get time off on weekends or evenings very often, it's usually in the middle of the week, or some odd hours of the day, but I'll try to set something up. Oh, and I've been calling you Koh all evening so please, you can call me Kei."  
  
Nodding as he closed the car door, Koh answered, "I'll look forward to your call, Kei." He smiled and waved before heading up the steps to the apartment building.

#=#=#=#=#

  
Kirishima returned to work at Club Sion after two days off expecting to be buried in paperwork and he was not disappointed. It was amazing just how many trivial things could crop up in such a short time. Luckily most were easily remedied, and by mid-afternoon he had cleared all but a few of the more tenuous problems.  
  
Kirishima noted that Asami had arrived about an hour ago, so gathering the stack of work that needed his approval he entered the office. It took a while to discuss and straighten out all the paperwork to Asami's satisfaction, but they finished in about two hours time. Kirishima stood as if to leave, but remained standing in front of Asami's desk.  
  
"Is there something else we need to take care of?" Asami was surprised that Kirishima had not left the office immediately and wondered if it was that something personal he had to discuss.  
  
"Yes, we do; I treated Koh to dinner the other night. It will be on my expense report for this month. It was the least that I could do since Aki was forced to stand him up that evening."  
  
Asami raised an eyebrow; a scowl appeared on his face. "Forced? And you treated him to dinner? That is very unlike you Kei."  
  
Kirishima stood tall, shoulders back, and stared Asami in the eye. "Ryuu, I do not wish to offend you or interfere in your personal relationships, but you should have allowed Aki to at least phone his friend and let him know that he wouldn't be able to meet with him. He was still waiting over an hour later, and very concerned that something may have happened to him. You are always courteous when you need to cancel an appointment for whatever reason – the same should hold true for Aki. I treated Koh since I felt some sort of reparation was necessary for the oversight."  
  
"You are very formal today. Is there a reason?" Asami studied Kirishima closely. "And did you enjoy your dinner with Koh?"  
  
Kirishima stood without wavering. "I just felt you might like an explanation of why I put the dinner on the expense account, that's all. And yes, the dinner was very pleasant; we were both hungry so we dined at Suzunari."  
  
Asami smirked. "I see. Explanation accepted. Do we have any other pressing matters to take care of?"  
  
"No, Asami-sama." Kirishima bowed slightly, pushed his glasses back up, then turned to leave the office.  
  
"Kei," called Asami. "I did make it up to him."  
  
With a turn of the head Kirishima replied, "Thank you, Ryuu," then continued on his way out.  
  
Asami sat and stared at the door after Kirishima left, a puzzled look was on his face. Even as a friend Kirishima never spoke up like that, especially when it had to do with Aki; he knew not to interfere with their relationship. And he had taken Koh to Suzunari; that was Kirishima's personal escape haven. Kirishima had few people that he would call friend, and all were co-workers, so for him to take an interest in someone outside the group was at the least very unusual. He would have to keep a closer eye on Kirishima, and perhaps even Koh.

#=#=#=#=#

  
Koh awoke to someone pounding on his door. A quick glance at the clock said 12:58 and by the light coming in the windows it had to be past noon, not midnight. Not bothering to put clothes on over his underwear he grumpily called out, "I hear you, dammit, stop the pounding!"  
  
He opened the door to Aki, his arms full of bags of fast food, soda, and a six pack of beer.  
  
Kicking his shoes off at the doorway he walked in and headed for the kitchen, calling out, "I owe you a night out. I kinda got waylaid and by the time I got free it was…."  
  
"Yeah, I know. Asami ambushed you. Kirishima told me."  
  
Dropping the groceries on the table Aki turned and looked toward Koh, a look of total surprise on his face. "Kirishima told you? What, he called you?"  
  
Koh had followed him to the kitchen and was busy rooting through the bags, searching through the boxes to see what Aki had brought. "Nah, he showed up at the bar. He even took me out to dinner to make up for not being able to party with you."  
  
"Really? Kirishima did? That's got to be a first. He's not the type to be considerate of other people's problems. So where'd you go, a family restaurant?" Aki picked up the six pack and put it in the fridge.  
  
Koh smiled. "Nope, we went to Suzunari. It's a nice place. A little pricy, but it's worth going every once in a while. We had Kaiseki ryori [1], you know, that nice traditional meal that takes forever to serve? It was so delicious… oh, and he said that Asami was going to pay for it since it was his fault that you couldn't make it. He even drove me home."  
  
An evil glint sparkled in Aki's eyes. "So, did you have a nice date?"  
  
Koh looked up, barbeque sauce on his face from the hot wings he was scoffing down. "Ha-ha, very funny. I think deep down that Kirishima's really a nice guy. I think he was as stressed as I was, so we kinda consoled each other.  
  
Aki frowned, muttering more to himself than anything, "You wouldn't say that if you'd have met him like I did the first time."  
  
"Eh?" Koh's attention had been compromised – he had found the box of sushi and was currently sorting through them, picking out several of his favorites.  
  
"Ah, nothing. I will admit he's been kind to me after those first few meetings, and I know that I can count on him in a pinch." The memory of Hong Kong suddenly surfaced; the gunfire on the boat deck, Kirishima's unconscious body lying across his lap, the blood coating his hand when he went to move him – it came back all too vividly.  
  
Realizing that Koh was making short work of the food he brought Aki yelled, "Hey, leave me something to eat, will ya?"  
  
"OK, OK. So which DVD are we going to watch?" muttered Koh between swigs of soda.  
  
"No DVD. I got tickets for a movie; the show starts at 4:00."  
  
Readying to stuff another hot wing in his mouth Koh asked, "Which one?"  
  
Aki chuckled, waiting for Koh's reaction. "The Wolverine."  
  
Koh dropped the food he was about to put in his mouth. "What! You got tickets? Really? That's one of the hottest movies out right now. Who'd you sleep with...."  
  
He stopped right there; there wasn't any reason to finish the sentence. "Uh, never mind." But on second thought Koh looked at Aki. "No way, he didn't, did he?"  
  
Aki's face held a smirk that Asami would be proud of. "I laid a guilt trip on him you wouldn't believe. I probably could have gotten him to give us a limo ride to the theatre but I didn't want to push my luck. The tickets were what I was after to begin with for our night out, but I didn't have enough money to get them."  
  
"Sometimes it pays to have rich friends," quipped Koh.  
  
In a barely audible voice Aki said, "Yeah, but sometimes the payback can get kinda rough." Although he had talked Asami into the tickets, Aki knew the next time they were together he would pay dearly for them. Nobody got anything for free from Asami.  
  
Koh looked at Aki, sensing that he was thinking of things other than the movie. "Let me grab a quick shower and get dressed. Just leave me a few more of those hot wings, will ya?" and he scurried off to the bathroom, leaving Aki with a very picked over box of sushi and less than half a box of hot wings.  
  
TBC 

#=#=#=#=#

  
[1] Kaiseki ryori is regarded as Japan's most exquisite culinary refinement. Consisting mainly of vegetables and fish with a seasoning base of seaweed and mushrooms, the dishes are characterized by their refined savor.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kei has been a cold, emotionless being for nine years, but something about Koh is melting his icy exterior.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listed characters other than my original character are the property of Yamane Ayano. She graciously allows us to play with them.

Chapter 2

The sticky-fingered dealer had been summarily dispatched from the list of active suppliers, not to mention from the list of living suppliers, by the time Kirishima returned to work. He was given the information on the replacement supplier, one whose credentials were much more encouraging than those of his predecessor. He would still be under close scrutiny for several months but he didn't foresee any problems.

Things had settled into a fairly sedate routine for the last two weeks and Kirishima was enjoying the lack of major disasters to handle and actually was working more normal hours; the days were busy but the evenings were free. He started thinking about Koh, wondering how he was holding up with his problematic clients. Perhaps he should give him a call and invite him out to dinner. He knew from Takaba's schedule that the young men had nothing planned for the weekend and a nice dinner just might help ease the tension from the week's workload. It often worked for him when things were tense and seemed to have helped Koh when they dined before.

Koh came in from work totally exhausted. Dropping his computer pack on the sofa he went directly to his bedroom and collapsed face down on the bed. His head hurt so badly that his vision was blurry. The clients from hell had been in top form today. If he didn't need the job he'd tell them exactly what he thought of their ideas and where they should shove them, but his boss was a good guy and didn't deserve to be discredited like that. It would hurt his boss more than it would make him feel better.

He was just starting to doze off when his phone rang. Choosing to ignore it at first, he finally gave in and took a look to see who was calling. To his surprise it was Kirishima, and he was asking him out to dinner. His head was still hurting and despite misgivings he declined after briefly explaining his day, asking if they could do it another day. Kirishima stated that he understood and would call him tomorrow to see if he felt better.

Koh had fallen asleep for a few hours and the headache had mostly gone away. He had learned long ago that stress headaches needed a few hours rest and relaxation for relief. There was a knock at the door as he lay there trying to decide which flavor of ramen to make for dinner. Staggering into the darkened living room he detoured to turn on a small light before answering the door. To his amazement Kirishima stood there, holding several bags, one of which looked and smelled like a bag of takeout sushi.

"Kirishi…,uh, Kei, what are you doing here? And whatever you're you've got in that bag smells awfully good!"

"I hope I didn't wake you, but I will say you sound much better than you did on the phone. I thought you would take a nap to help the headache. I brought you some dinner since you probably don't feel well enough to make something other than ramen."

Remembering his manners he invited Kei in, hastily giving his place a quick once-over to see if there was anything that was embarrassingly out of order. Not that it really mattered. Kei had been in his place several times to gather Aki for Asami, and a few of those times they had been drinking heavily and the place had been nowhere near immaculate.

By this time Kei had entered the small kitchenette and gotten two plates and bowls from the cabinet. He divided the container of miso soup between the two bowls and placed the boxes of sushi on the table between the two plates. He pulled two beers from one of the bags he had brought, then asked Koh, "You haven't taken any medications have you? If so we will have to forgo the beer."

Koh had been standing in the doorway, watching Kei set the table for dinner. He did it with such ease, like that was his lifetime career. He smiled at the question, surprised that Kei had actually thought to ask about any pain relievers he might have taken. "No, I fell asleep right after talking to you, and woke up just before you got here. And as to your previous comment – yes, I was trying to decide which ramen to make for dinner. Pork was winning. But this smells delicious! May I start?"

"Of course, that's why I set it out. Oh, I do hope you don't mind that I join you. I haven't had dinner yet either."

Patting Kei on the shoulder as he passed by him he replied, "I would be very upset if you didn't join me. This wonderful dinner is all your doing. All that I would have had to offer you would be pork or shrimp ramen."

Kei stared after the young man, encouraged by the pat on the back. He watched him start with the soup, watching as each spoonful passed his lips. Suddenly self-conscious of what he was doing he started eating his own dinner. But he continued to take a peek at those lovely lips every so often.

They ate in relative silence, neither one knowing what to say to spark a conversation. When they had finished Koh rose and put the leftovers in the fridge. Kei put the dishes in the sink and began cleaning off the table. Together they made short work of cleaning the dishes.

"I feel one hundred percent better. How can I thank you Kei? You've soothed over all my rough spots again."

Kei was thinking of several ways he could thank him but he wasn't about to suggest any of them and risk getting thrown out of the apartment.

"What do you have in DVDs? Maybe we could watch a movie or something. It's still early and I have nothing to do until tomorrow afternoon." Kei watched Koh's face for a reaction.

"I really don't own many DVDs, I usually rent them when I want to watch something." Koh didn't want him to leave yet, but he couldn't come up with anything that they could do together. Maybe Kei played cards – poker or blackjack or something. Come on Koh, think of something!

Kei knew it seemed silly at the time, but it was worth a chance. "How about playing some video games? They are one of the few hobby skills that I have, and if I do say so, I'm pretty good at some of the games. Perhaps we could have a challenge match in something?"

Koh looked at Kei in amazement. This man, whom he had the unerring feeling was an extremely dangerous man, wanted to play video games with him. The idea struck him as outrageous, but it also sounded like a fun time, and something he'd like to do.

With a smirk worthy of Asami, Koh replied, "You're on! Let's go see what you got, big boy. You got a favorite game?

Returning the smirk Kei replied, "Sure do. Call of Duty – Black Ops. You've got it for the Xbox 360, right? I do believe I recall you and Takaba-san discussing the game once or twice.

They finally quit the game when Kei noticed that it was almost 2 AM. Koh thanked him for the fun evening, and again for the wonderful dinner. "You brightened my day; I didn't believe that I could have such a fun time once I came home."

Looking down at Koh Kei replied, "I'm glad that I could be of some assistance in cheering you up. You sounded so distraught on the phone I just had to do something. And it worked out beautifully. Next time you find yourself in that condition, please give me a call."

Koh shuffled his feet. "I don't have your number."

"Give me your phone." Kei took the phone and put his number in the contacts section. "You have it now, so don't forget to call if you need a distraction." He took Koh's hand in one hand and placed the phone in his hand with the other, holding on for a bit longer than necessary.

"Thanks, I'll do that." Koh got an odd feeling when Kei held his hand. After closing the door behind Kei he leaned against the door, wondering what that feeling was all about.

As Kei was walking down the steps he wondered why, after all these years of keeping perfect control, was he was suddenly interested in someone?  
#=#=#=#=#

A few days later Koh and Aki were at their local hangout, having a few beers before heading home. Koh had been through another rough day with his problem clients and just needed to vent for a bit.

Aki shook his head in disbelief of their stupidity. "It's a shame you can't just tell them to go elsewhere. And they may want you to do another project after this one? After all the bitching and the grief they've given you? I'd tell them to get lost, real fast."

"Kei –Kirishima said to just try to ignore them as best as I can, especially if they do decide they want me to do more work for them. He even suggested that I tell them I'm booked solid and foist them on my problem co-worker. They both behave the same."

Aki caught the slip but let it ride. Koh was in too bad a mood for him to rub it in now. Later he'd recall it, when Koh wasn't expecting it.

Have you talked to your boss about these people? I think he should step in and lay down some rules in this instance. And when did you talk to Kirishima about this? Sounds like you guys are getting to be buddy-buddy."

"That night that he took me to dinner, while you were busy entertaining Asami as I waited for over an hour for you to show up! And we're not close pals, just budding friends I guess. I don't know, it's just that when he's not with Asami he's a completely different person. Do you know what he does for Asami? He said that he was the Sion Corporation head accountant, but he doesn't look like an accountant to me. The man's got muscles beyond belief you can't see under that suit he always wears. He's as much a bodyguard as that Suoh guy."

Aki just couldn't leave the bait alone. "And how do you know that he has such a muscular body? Have you two been doing things that I should, or maybe shouldn't, know about? And you started to call him Kei a few minutes ago."

Koh turned to Aki with a look of impatience on his face. "He asked me to call him Kei when he dropped me off at home that one time, that's all. Anyway, like I said, he's a different person away from work, really painfully shy and isolated. I think he needs a friend. And if Asami is really into the dirty underground business like the rumors say, then what kind of life does Kirishima live? Hell, you got caught up in it a few times, didn't you, with that Feilong guy? He even kidnapped Takato and me. He surely wasn't any legitimate business man. We didn't see any guns, but a few of those guys' jackets had a suspicious bulge on the left side."

Aki had no reply for what Koh was saying. He knew positively that Asami was in the illegal underground trade but couldn't physically prove it. Every time he did have pictures to prove it, Asami got hold of them and suddenly they never existed. He knew what Kirishima did for Asami, and bodyguard was only the beginning of it. Hell, he had even taken Kirishima's gun and gone after Yuri.

"I'm sorry. Maybe I'm just jealous that you get along with him so well. Asami and I don't sit and talk like that, though I wish we did. His idea of conversation centers on a few hours in his bed, with no pillow talk." Aki caught sight of the waitress and signaled for a refill for the both of them.

Koh looked at Aki, suddenly feeling sorry for his friend. "You don't have any type of conversations or interactions with him? About anything? It's only sex with him? Why do you stay around?"

"How can we? We're so far apart socially; he's an upper class, rich, successful businessman at the top of his field. I'm a lowly photographer that has to scrape together enough money to keep my rent paid and my stomach filled while trying to fulfill my life's dream of being a criminal photographer. What would we have in common to talk about? And why do I stay? I'm still trying to figure that out, other than the fact that I like the sex and he won't let me leave – he says I belong to him. He calls me Akihito but I can't even call him Ryuichi; there's nothing strong enough between us that would make me want to be that personal. That's another reason why I'm not sure that I love him – he gives me no reason to love him."

The waitress arrived and left their order, picking up the money Aki had placed on the table.

"Damn Aki, I'd definitely rethink that whole situation." Koh grabbed his beer and poured it into his glass.

"Easier said than done. When he wants me around, he sends his bodyguards, even Kirishima sometimes, to gather me and take me to his penthouse; you know that, you've seen it. And I do know about those muscles of Kirishima's that you were talking about. I've felt them first hand when he's thrown me over his shoulder a few times."

Aki shook his head, opening his beer. "I think we need to get off this subject; it's starting to depress me and I'm supposed to be cheering you up."

Koh chuckled. "Yeah, we did kinda stray from the original topic, didn't we? It's getting late, so I'm gonna finish this beer and head on home. You did help cheer me up Aki. I'm just a bit concerned for you now."

Waving his hand toward Koh Aki replied, "Don't worry about me. I'm a survivor, remember? Give me time – I'll figure out what the right thing is to do." But the night of payback for the movie tickets was still fresh in his mind, as were the bruises on his wrists and ankles.  
#=#=#=#=#

"I think you owe me a little special attention tonight." Asami was running his hands under Aki's shirt, tweaking and teasing his nipples.

Aki was trying not to react to the stimulation, but wasn't fairing too well. "What for? You haven't done anything special for me."

Sliding one hand down the back of Aki's jeans he whispered, "What about those movie tickets I got for you on short notice a week ago?"

Aki felt the anger rise. "You owed me those tickets for cancelling my night out with Koh that we had planned for weeks. You promised them to me as an apology.'

The dreaded smirk took over Asami's face. "Yes, but you need to pay the interest. Shall we go with the handcuffs tonight, or do you want the bondage straps?"

"Neither, you bastard! Get your hands off of me!" But fight as he might, Asami had the upper hand all the way, and Aki found himself tightly bound in the leather straps.  
#=#=#=#=#

Kei had called Koh and asked him if he'd like to go out walking in the park, all he would need would be a good pair of walking shoes. It was a mild, pleasant day, perfect for some outdoor exercise so he agreed. Kei said he would be over in about an hour and Koh said that was fine, he would be ready. When Kei arrived he was surprised that he hadn't brought his car. He was also surprised to see him in jeans. Kei had never mentioned which park they were going to so he asked. Kei surprised him by saying, "Ueno Park, to visit the Zoo. I haven't been there for a long time and I don't want to go alone."

Koh saw that distant, far-away look in his eyes as he said that, and wondered what could cause such a reaction in an emotionally strong man like Kei. In hopes of cheering him up a bit he replied, "Well, I don't think I've been there since elementary school, and I don't remember anything. So you'll have to be my guide, OK?"

They took the train to Ueno station with Kei relating what he remembered of the park and zoo. Once they disembarked from the train they leisurely walked through the park to the zoo entrance. As silly as the idea had sounded to Koh to begin with, he had a very good time. Kei was very knowledgeable about the park even though he hadn't been there for such a long time. Since the last time Kei had been there many of the zoo's exhibits were rebuilt with natural habitats for most of the species. The new habitats were very much of interest to him, since he preferred to see the animals living naturally rather than in a metal cage.

They stopped at one of the refreshment stands to get something to eat before heading back to Koh's apartment. The conversation on the way back was filled with sights that each had seen but not the other. There was so much to take in that you couldn't catch everything that was going on, so they filled each other in on missed events. To anyone paying attention they gave the impression of two young children with all the "Did you see…?" comments between them.

Koh invited Kei in for a beer before he went home. Since he wasn't driving Koh felt it would be OK for a brew or two. The conversation had gone on to the other public buildings and museums in Ueno Park and maybe they would go visit them on another day.

They were sitting on the floor, in front of the Xbox, finishing up the six pack. Koh had a glazed look in his eyes; the beer was starting to have an effect on him, loosening up his control over his emotions. Smiling up at Kei he wondered what the man was thinking at that moment. He had suddenly gone quiet.

Still clutching his glasses in his left hand, Kei braced himself on his left arm, and slowly snaked his right arm lightly around Koh's waist. At the same time he closed in on Koh until their lips met.

Koh was surprised as he felt Kei's tongue trace lightly across his lower lip, causing him to gasp and involuntarily part his lips. He felt Kei's tongue enter his mouth, seemingly accepting this reaction as an invitation to explore. And explore he did; dancing across the roof of his mouth, behind his teeth, and finally engaging his tongue in battle. As he began to gasp for breath the kiss was broken; and at the same time so was the hold.

Kei look flustered as he put his glasses back on. He stood up quickly and muttered, "I think I shouldn't have done that. I'm deeply sorry, I'll be going." Grabbing his jacket he quickly fled the apartment, all but running down the steps.

Still stunned by Kei's actions, Koh didn't think to run after him. He hadn't disliked it, far from it. Not only had his lips and mouth responded, but his groin was letting him know what he thought of Kei. This was bad; he never meant to fall for the man, but there was just something about Kei that made him migrate to him like opposite poles of two magnets.

There was a charming sweetness that he hid, like something he buried years ago and wouldn't allow it to see the light of day, as if it were to surface his whole character would crumble. Equally strong, there was a sadness that cried to be eased. Whatever was in his past had shaped this version of Kei Kirishima. He didn't dare intrude on the man's privacy – if he wanted him to know he would tell him. But he still wondered what that other Kei Kirishima was like.

For the next five days Koh tried to get in touch with Kei. Phone calls, text messages – nothing triggered a reply. He knew Kei was bothered by the fact he had kissed him, but Koh wanted to explain that he didn't mind, that it was something he was comfortable with. But he wouldn't reply to any of his attempts to converse with him and he just didn't want to explain it to him over the phone in a text message.

Having been given some extra time by his boss that afternoon and finally fed up with the silent treatment from Kei, he decided to go to the source – The Sion Building. He didn't know how much success he would have getting in the building, but he had to at least try. The guard looked sort of familiar, so Koh tried the direct approach.

"I need to see Kirishima-san."

The scowling face of the guard didn't change. "Do you have an appointment?"

Great, this isn't going to work. Let's try another angle. "I need to speak with him concerning Takaba-san."

"Not unless you have an appointment." He stepped a bit closer to Koh, using the move to intimidate him a bit more.

He was losing his patience. This was a business office, he should at least be able to enter and speak with someone at the main desk. "Call Kirishima-san. I know he'll see me. The name is Fujioka Koh." Or at least I hope he will.

The noise that the guard made almost sounded like he snorted. "I can't do that, and I'm going to have to ask you to leave the premises."

Koh sized up his chances with the guard. With his height, weight, and general nastiness Koh figured he'd land on the other side of the street minimum should the guard pick him up and toss him.

OK, one more try and then I'll have to think of something else, maybe get Aki to help me. "Please, it's very important that I speak with him. You can even send another guard up with me. Kirishima-san is Asami-sama's First Assistant; his office is just down the hall from Asami-sama's office. I've been here before. Please, I really need to see him."

The guard's eyes narrowed, and you could tell by the strain on his face that he was thinking hard about what Koh said. Evidently mentioning Asami as Asami–sama had some sort of magic pull around here. Finally he took out his cell phone and made a call. After some words were exchanged he ended the call.

Still scowling he said, "Kirishima-san said you may go up," and he opened the door for him.

Koh bowed and bit his tongue rather than say, "I told you so" as he entered the building.

By the time he reached the executive floor Koh was thinking out what he wanted to say. He had been trying to get in touch with the man all week but really hadn't thought of any sweet way to phrase what he wanted to say.

The door was open to Kirishima's office but he knocked on the door frame anyway. Kirishima took off his glasses and waved him in.

Koh walked to the side of the desk, all his carefully thought out words forgotten. "I want to know why you ran. By the time I got my wits about me you were long gone. And then you wouldn't answer my calls or my texts for the past week. Why?"

Kirishima finished polishing his glasses and put them back on. "I said I was sorry for what I did."

That was not the answer Koh wanted. "Why wouldn’t you answer my calls?"

Kirishima closed his eyes. "I was afraid to talk to you. I thought that you were angry with me."

Now Koh was getting angry. "But I'm not. Let's have another excuse."

Surprise showed on Kei's face at Koh's comment. Letting out a deep breath Kirishima stood up. "We can't discuss this here. Come with me." As they left the office Kirishima informed the suite's secretary that he was leaving for the day and should anything important come up to notify him by cell phone.

They rode the elevator down to the garage level and went to Kirishima's car.

It was a silent ride to Kei's apartment. Koh was shocked when he entered the place. It was small, cold, colorless, and excruciatingly neat, antiseptically so. There was no color to speak of anywhere; the walls were off-white, even the few throw rugs scattered about the apartment's hard wood floors were void of color. What furniture he could see was either white or a very light beige and chrome. Nothing hung on the walls save for a flat screen TV and there weren't any decorations on the table or shelves. The one bookcase that he could see was filled with business law books and journals, bound in beige leather. Besides the TV the only item that stood out was the black laptop on the white desk.

The apartment had no soul, just barren solitude. Compared to Koh's cluttered apartment this was like living in a cell.

Not wanting to insult Kei Koh searched for words to try to compliment the man on his choice of style.

"Nice place. I think it's bigger than mine. I thought it would be a bit different though."

"It suits my needs." Kei motioned to the small table in the kitchenette. "Have a seat. Is green tea all right with you? I don't have anything else."

"That's fine, but I came to talk." Koh watched as he gathered two bottles of tea from the fridge and placed them on the kitchen table

"I know. You want to know why I ran. Truthfully, I'm not sure myself. I've had no interests, romantic or sexual, for many years. I had a lover years ago but… he… died." Kei paused, remembering the past. "And so did my heart. My life ended. Since then I've never been inclined to find someone else. I didn't feel there was anyone who could fill the void. It's too deep."

Koh watched Kei's face as he spoke. He felt that Kei wasn't telling the full story, that there was something else that needed to be said, something more painful, but he wasn't willing to go that far yet.

His eyes filling with tears, Kei spoke softly. "I loved him so much. We were forever, or so we thought."

Again there was a long pause while Kei composed himself; Koh was about to break the silence when Kei spoke again. "You ignited something in me. I don't know how or why, but you broke through the wall. That whole day at the park I felt so comfortable with you. I didn't want the day to end. It's been so long since I felt anything for anyone, I didn't know what to say or do. And when you looked at me so seductively that night I just had to kiss you. But afterwards the look on your face was of shock… so I ran."

Koh smiled, remembering the moment. "At the time I wasn't trying to be seductive, I was trying to figure out what you were thinking. And you aren't the only one that's perplexed by this. I'm getting weird feelings around you, when you touch me, look at me, ah hell, just your being around me gets me confused."

Kei removed his glasses, rose from his seat, and leaned over Koh, carefully wrapping one arm around his shoulders. "So what does this do to you?" and kissed him deeply.

His heart was pounding, his breath all but stolen away by the kiss. He slowly rose from the chair so he could put his arms around Kei. The kiss continued for countless moments, until both needed to break for air. Koh rested his forehead on Kei's chest.

"Kei, what do we do? I've never been in this kind of situation. I've been with girls, but nothing very serious. I don't know how to handle something like this."

Lifting Koh's chin with his fingers Kei kissed him on the forehead. "I think we've done enough for today. We cleared up the misunderstanding I had and you've admitted to something that will change your life. How about I take you to dinner before you go home?"

"That would be nice. How about you make it somewhere a bit private, where we can talk quietly and get to know each other. Neither one of us has any true knowledge of the other." Looking at Kei he corrected his statement to, "Well, I don't know much about you anyway."

Kei smiled, and picked up his glasses. Koh noticed that he looked at them funny before putting them on.

"I know just the place. Let me call ahead then we can go."

TBC


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kei has been a cold, emotionless being for nine years, but something about Koh is melting his icy exterior.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentioned characters except for my original character are the property of Yamane Ayano. She graciously allows us to play with them.

Chapter 3

The restaurant that Kei had chosen was a traditional Japanese Inn. He had reserved a private room for them to dine, and the room opened up to view a magnificent garden, complete with a koi pond. Koh was taken by the beauty of the surroundings and said so.

"I've always found this place to be very soothing. I've dined here on occasion but this is the first time in many years that I've reserved a private room.

Koh turned and looked at Kei. This was a special place to him – he had been here with his past lover. Koh suddenly felt like he was intruding on a treasured memory. When they had arrived the matron in charge called him Kirishima-sama; the deep respect showed not only in the speech but in the body language. The matron had looked at him with surprise, then bowed and smiled. This place, possibly even this room, was part of Kei's past. But he would wait until Kei was ready to share this with him. It would be very rude of him to question him about what special memories this place held.

The table was set with several bottles of sake and various appetizer dishes. Kei had ordered shrimp tempura and stir fry when the server delivered the sake.

"You know some very nice places to eat. I don't often go to the traditional Japanese style restaurants." Koh was nervous, afraid to say anything that might bring back memories of the past.

"When I first graduated I ate out often, but then things happened and I didn't have the will to socialize like I had." There was that distant look in Kei's eyes again.

The food arrived and Koh was spared having to come up with something to dispel the coolness in Kei. They discussed the differences they tasted in the foods compared to those they had eaten in other places, but neither had come up with a better place for the shrimp tempura.

The meal finished and they sat with the pot of green tea. Kei spoke in a soft voice, "I'd forgotten how good it feels to share a meal like this."

Leaning back against the wall, Kei sipped his tea before speaking. "I'll start first since you know the least about me. My name is Kirishima Kei. I am 37 years old, 11 years your senior. I attended Tokyo University on a scholarship to obtain a degree in accounting, which I further expanded to a full MBA degree. I graduated with high honors and was immediately recruited by what is now the Sion Group. I worked there for a few years as a head accountant before an encounter with Asami-sama changed my life. Within six months I had become his first assistant; I was handling the legal dealings for all his night clubs and had oversight on the handling of the accounts. Not much has changed since then." He turned and looked at Koh, letting him know it was his turn.

Cocking his head Koh started, "I don't know if there is anything you don't already know about me. I'm pretty sure you checked me out real good when Aki became Asami's lover. I've even noticed a few times that I was being followed by one of you guys. So, what's to tell?"

Chuckling, Kei answered, "That's very close to what was done, but your timing is off – it started before Aki became his lover – however you are a sharp one. How about telling me how you, Aki, and Takato started out?"

Koh nodded, "That I can do. We met in high school, and we all wound up going to the same University; Aki was the wild one of the bunch, but then I guess you can figure that out just by looking at his juvie record, which I know you must have a copy filed somewhere." Koh gave Kei a knowing look then continued. "Takato and I were good boys and don't have a record."

Koh poured another himself another cup of the tea. It was a rare blend and very delicious, so he wanted to enjoy it while it was still hot. "Takato was always super serious and a bit of a wallflower so Aki always made sure he went with us when we went out partying. Aki was into Visual Arts and Photography, Takato was in the Bio-Sciences, and I went straight for the Computer Programming Track. We all had high grades in general; Aki's were the lowest, but still above average."

"Sounds like you guys have been close for some time."

Koh looked at Kei. "Yeah, Aki from high school, Takato from the last year of middle school. How about you? Did you have any close friends in University?"

Koh realized he said something wrong just by the look on Kei's face.

"Not really, I was too studious for others to bother with me." Except for one, very beautiful man.

Quickly changing the subject, Kei asked, "You aren't working today. Did something happen?"

Koh smiled in relief, happy that the subject had turned away from Kei.

"It sure did. The clients from hell finally pushed the wrong buttons in the right order and I blew up. The boss was there and heard me; he asked them to leave before taking me into his office to simmer down. He'd noticed how uncooperative they were being but hadn't realized how seriously they had been aggravating me. I apologized to him for causing such a disturbance and causing harm to his business, but he only reprimanded me for not letting him know sooner. He said that behavior of that kind by clients is not tolerable in his business. He gave me the rest of the day off to calm down. He was going to meet with the clients to let them know exactly what they can say and do with his employees, and if they don't like it to find another company with which to work."

With a sheepish look he continued. "He was right, I should have gone to him sooner. Even you and Aki said so. So, I went out and had a quiet walk and wound up at Sion. Since I was straightening out problems I decided I wouldn't quit until I got to talk to you. Through my persistence I did find out the magic word to get in around there is 'Asami-sama'. You should have seen the guard when I mentioned that I knew him – he thought I was just another punk kid. That's when he decided that he better call you. I had been trying to get him to call for at least 15 minutes."

With little more to add to the conversation they left the restaurant, and again the matron smiled brightly and bowed deeply to the two of them. Koh wondered exactly how well she knew Kei.

Kei drove Koh home and asked if they could get together on the weekend. Asami was to be away and he would have the time to himself. Koh said that he intended to go out with Aki on Friday night since he also knew that Asami would be away. They agreed on Saturday.

When Kei arrived back at his apartment he was too agitated to try to sleep. It had been a surprising day with Koh's confession. I've lived for the past nine years without letting myself have any interest in anyone, so why now? And why Koh? Why did I take him there, to our restaurant? Am I testing myself, to see if I can handle it? To see if enough time has passed to allow me to hope again? To live? Dante, Innamorato, is it finally time for me to move on?

Kei sat in the dimly lit kitchenette tossing those thoughts around in his mind until the first rays of the dawn peeked through the window. He still had no answers.  
#=#=#=#=#

They were finally spending some quiet time alone. The past Saturday they had gone to see a highly-rated movie before deciding on dining at the new pizzeria next to the movie theatre. Unfortunately they ran into Aki who had also gone to see the same movie, so the three of them spent the rest of the evening together discussing the finer points of the film.

This time it was Kei who had just come through a bad day, coming to Koh's place to unwind a bit and rant about Asami's inflexibility before heading home. Together they had prepared a light supper and were relaxing on the sofa, half-heartedly watching a rather boring DVD. Kei suddenly slid sideways and stretched out on the couch and placed his head in Koh's lap.

Koh looked at the man stretched out before him. "Does it ever bother you, hearing Asami and Takaba going at it?"

Kei smiled softly. "Sometimes. If you ever heard the two of them you'd really wonder just how erotic it is."

"Oh yeah, I did; both Takato and I heard them once. We had gone over to have dinner with Aki. We were just cleaning up the dishes when Asami came home unexpectedly. We decided to finish cleaning up while Asami went off with Aki. We couldn't get out of the penthouse fast enough. We didn't realize that they were going to get it on that fast. I don't think I've ever heard anyone as vocal as Aki, not even in any of the porno films I've seen. That boss of yours sure works fast!"

Kei laughed. "Yes, he doesn't waste any time getting down to business, no matter what he's doing.

Koh was mesmerized by Kei's face. He looked so different now, the laughter brought out another facet of his personality that he evidently kept hidden.

"So how do you tolerate listening to them all the time? Your office is just down the hall from the penthouse. And the house guards, they have to stand there all night, right? That's got to be difficult for them. Their wives and girlfriends must have to take care of them once they get home."

Kei sighed. "I just try to ignore them." He grew silent for a few moments then replied to Koh's other question. "The guards are only at the door if there is the slightest hint of trouble, otherwise they are in the security office down the hall from my office. Once Asami took over the whole floor we were all moved into separate offices that would be on the same floor.

And it's not just at the penthouse that they go at it – they have trysts in the Sion office too. At least that has been sound-proofed since Asami-sama also uses the office area for very important private meetings. But don't you tell them that you know about that. I'll be in deep trouble."

Chuckling at the thought Koh replied, "No worries – if it gets out I'll say Aki told me. That soundproofing has got to be a blessing for the other employees at Sion. I don't know how they would react to his screaming. They'd probably call the cops, thinking Asami was killing him."

Kei had slowly drifted off to sleep, so Koh removed his glasses and placed them on the end table to his left. Koh studied his face. He'd never noticed the small scars surrounding his eyes before. It puzzled him as to how he got them. Maybe they were part of the mysterious past he wouldn't discuss.

Having turned off the boring DVD Koh had just dozed off. He woke up when he felt Kei suddenly move. He looked down to see a very worried look on his sleeping face. He could feel Kei's body twitching in spasms of what seemed pain, and he was crying softly, "Dante!"

He was having a nightmare, and Koh knew that this nightmare was real – this was the sorrow that Kei had buried deeply in his soul. Although he wanted to he did not try to wake Kei – that is one thing you are not supposed to do. Wanting to do something constructive for Kei he stroked his hair and spoke softly to him, hoping that his touch and voice would send some reassuring support to the man.

But now Kei was perspiring heavily and starting to thrash around. The nightmare was getting quite severe and Koh felt he had no choice but to try to wake him when suddenly Kei screamed, "NO!" in the most harrowing voice he had ever heard. Kei sat upright, now awake, with tears streaming down his face. Burying his face in his hands Koh heard him sob painfully, "Dante, Innamorato…."

He didn't know how long they sat there, Koh with his arms wrapped around Kei, and Kei crying through the pain brought on by the nightmare. When he finally felt he could safely leave go of Kei he whispered, "I'll get a washcloth for your face and then I'll make you some tea; I'll be right back– I'll still be here for you."

There was no answer from Kei, but he did nod his head acknowledging that he had heard him.

When he returned from the bathroom Kei had settled back and was lying on the couch, one arm placed across his eyes; he had pulled one of the small pillows behind his neck. He could see small twitches from the minute sobs that continued to wrack his body. Somewhere he had carried a handkerchief on his person and it was now in his hand, wadded up. Koh knelt beside the sofa and gently called his name. Kei moved his arm and Koh placed the cool washcloth across his eyes. After a few minutes he seemed more settled, more back in control, the sobbing had stopped but there were still major remnants of the nightmare present.

"I'll go get the tea for you. I'll be right back." Koh worriedly looked at man stretched out on his sofa. Whatever was in that nightmare was something that he could not fight, and it had been with him for a very long time.

He brought in the tea and Kei partially sat up to drink some before settling back down. Koh took the washcloth and rinsed in out in the small bowl of water he brought in with the tea before placing it over Kei's eyes once more.

"Thanks. That feels good. I haven't had anyone take care of me for a long time." His hand wandered around until Koh took hold of it. They stayed like that for some time without speaking, just feeling secure in the closeness.

Finally, Koh asked if there was anything he could do, or if maybe talking about it would help ease the pain.

"I-I can't. There are too many things you shouldn't know, you mustn't know…."

Expecting that kind of answer Koh fired back. "Well, let's scratch the fact that Asami is operating in the Japanese underworld off the list. Ah, I do know that he has some legitimate businesses, like all the nightclubs, but I also know that all the dealings going on inside those nightclubs are not above board, so scratch that too. I've read the very few newspaper articles that managed to actually get printed on the man. I also know the cops can't touch him; he has too much power and too many high level cops and politicians in his pocket, so let's take that off the list."

Koh watched Kei remove the washcloth from his eyes and look at him in amazement, but Koh continued while staring straight in those eyes. "I did my homework too when Asami got interested in Aki. So, to continue, since you're his first assistant I guess that puts you in the category of Asami's henchman, right? I assume you carry a gun like Asami and Suoh, another illegal activity but absolutely necessary for a henchman. I don't have any particulars on what Asami is dealing in the underworld, but I really don't think that is necessary for me to know – it's enough that I know he's got dirty fingers. Now, what's left on that list that I shouldn't know?"

Kei looked at Koh in shock and then began to laugh. "You have no fear, do you? Saying that to the wrong person would get you killed in an instant. And you rattled it off like a grocery list."

Koh smiled. "So, how often do you have these nightmares? Have you seen a doctor about them, because that was no normal nightmare." He knew it was a loaded question, but he had to ask.

After sitting up and having another swallow of the tea he replied, "Not as often as I used to, but still too often for my liking. I've been to doctors, lots of them – they can't help because they can't erase memories. If I could forget they would go away, but you can't forget things like that."

Putting his hand on Kei's arm he asked the most dangerous question. "Forget things like what? And who's Dante?"

Kei closed his eyes, and in a whisper replied, "My life, to both questions."

He knew that something that dealt with Dante was the crux of the problem, but he also knew that Kei wouldn't tell him why for some reason. Whatever he had experienced to cause these nightmares would haunt him the rest of his days.

After he had sufficiently recovered Kei assured Koh that it wouldn't occur again for a while. He had these nightmares less frequently the past two years and he would be alright for many more months. After several intense kisses Kei left for home, hoping that Koh wouldn't worry too much about what happened. But knowing Koh and seeing the worried look on his face as he left, what happened was imbedded is his mind and he would spend his spare time trying to figure out what and why this happens.

Once home Kei went straight to the bedroom and stripped to his underwear. He laid down on the bed, not bothering to pull down the blanket and sheet. He had been gradually feeling less distraught when thinking of the past, so why was Dante on his mind so often anymore? They had been so happy together; the perfect 'made for each other' couple. Five years of happiness gone in a moment of madness.

I miss him so much, even after this long a time. Is it acceptable for me to find another lover? Koh is nothing like Dante. But yet… he has the kindness in him, the simple honesty that made Dante so appealing. But he also has the strength to carry heavy problems on his back. Would he be able to help carry mine?  
#=#=#=#=#

They had finished the daily paperwork that never seemed to end. Kirishima had stacked it neatly on the side of the desk, ready to be returned to his office for further processing when he left.

With a nervous look on his face he turned and asked, "Ryuu, you kept all the things from my old apartment, didn't you? The nightmares are starting to abate and I'm able to think about the past a little easier. There are a few things I'd like to find."

Knowing the seriousness of the question he motioned for Kirishima to sit.

"Yes I did. Everything is in storage in one of the sub-basements below Club Sion. "Asami sat in one of the chairs facing his friend." Do you want me to go with you?"

"I'd say no but I think I would rather have the moral support, if you don't mind."

Asami genuinely smiled at Kirishima. "Just tell me when you want to go."

Kirishima smiled back weakly. "Your schedule is free this afternoon, perhaps we could go then, before I lose my nerve?"

"We can leave now if you wish; would that be all right?"

Kirishima nodded. "Thanks Ryuu."

Kirishima entered the storage unit, the automatic lighting activating with his passing through the doorway and revealing stacks of boxes on each side of the room, each labeled with what was in them.

"I'll wait out here for you." He glanced at Kirishima and saw his hands shaking and his breathing was rapid and shallow. He seemed to be avoiding reading the labels on the boxes, as if afraid to read something he wasn't ready to handle yet. This was very hard on him, and the number of boxes seemed to overwhelm him. The furniture had been stored in another unit; this was only the personal effects.

"Do you know where…his music is?"

When Asami had emptied the apartment he made sure that whatever went into a box was all the same type item. He ordered that when everything was put in storage the boxes containing all the photographs were to be put in the back, so as not to be immediately visible upon entering the room. Photographs tended to be a main item that triggered relapses.

Pointing to a certain area on the one wall Asami said, "On the left, there are two small grey boxes marked MUSIC. Do you want to take both boxes or do you want to sort through them now for something specific?" Asami asked, reaching for a folding chair for him to sit on.

Kirishima looked confused. "I – I think that maybe I should take it all. I don't want to spend too much time in here. Not yet. I'll be able to search easier at home." He avoided looking at all the boxes again, instead he focused his attention outside the door of the storage unit.

Entering the room he said, "That's fine, we can carry these ourselves. I'll have Suoh bring the limo to the back entrance."

Kirishima nodded and they each picked up one of the boxes and exited the room, the lights fading behind them.

Asami had previously alerted Suoh of the events for that afternoon, and to make sure he said nothing to Kei about it. He knew it would be hard on him, and the fact he had asked him to come along meant he wasn't quite sure if he was ready to start sorting through the past.

As they got to Kirishima's apartment Asami placed the box on the kitchen table and asked, "Do you want to take the day off tomorrow? We have nothing too important scheduled."

Kirishima looked at the boxes and then back at Asami. "No, I think I can handle it but I'll let you know if I need the time off, thank you Ryuu."

When Asami got back in the limo Suoh lowered the partition glass and asked, "Is he all right?"

Asami sighed wearily as he lit a cigarette, "I hope so, but only time will tell. This is the first time he's asked for anything from the storage unit."  
#=#=#=#=#

Koh was having dinner with Kei at his place for a change. Kei was chopping up some vegetables for the dinner and he had offered to help, but all his offers were swiftly denied. After several more attempts to assist he was unceremoniously ousted from the kitchen and told to stay in the living room until dinner was ready.

Koh reluctantly agreed, but he knew that Kei did a much better job of preparing meals than he did. Sitting on the sofa he was about to turn on the TV when something out of place caught his eye. On the side table was a Bose Sound Dock with an I-pod attached. Picking up the remote he quickly figured out how it worked and put in the earphones. He had no idea what type of music Kei liked, and this was a perfect opportunity to find out.

Music he never expected to hear was coming through the earphones. It was some of the most beautiful traditional Japanese music he had ever heard. Whoever was playing was an exceptional talent. He listened to the music, losing all track of time until he saw Kei standing in front of him, with a look of shock on his face and his eyes filled with unshed tears.

Turning off the player and removing the earphones he asked, "Did I do something wrong? I was just wondering what type of music you listened to. I apologize if I did." He didn't know what else to say to the man, he looked so upset.

"Uh, no, I guess not" Kei stammered, but there wasn't any believability in his words. "Dinner's ready, come and eat before it gets cold," and he returned to the kitchen.

They sat through most of the meal in silence until Koh couldn't take it anymore.

"Why shouldn't I have listened to that music? It was beautiful; I've never heard the koto [1] played so well. An ancient instrument brought into the present times through music. The artist is very talented.

With sadness in his eyes he corrected Koh, "Was, he was very talented."

Koh finally put two and two together and got the whole picture – the artist was Kei's deceased lover. He had messed up badly, again. No wonder he was so upset that I was listening to his music.

He bowed his head as low as he could. "Gomen'nasai. I apologize for touching things that were not mine; I should have gotten permission first."

Kei studied the young man across from him. He was truly repentant for his indiscretion.

"Raise your head. I'm not angry. It's just that I didn't expect you to be interested in such a minor detail about me. I know that you are curious about my past life. I cannot tell you all, but I think it's time to tell you a bit about Dante. I think I can handle explaining how we met. Let's sit in the living room where it's more comfortable for a story."

Both men rose, but Koh stopped to gather the dishes and put them in the sink before sitting on the sofa next to Kei.

Kei had brought in some green tea and cups on a tray which he placed on the glass table before the sofa.

Handing a cup to Koh he started, "I'll try to keep calm while telling the story, but please be patient if I need to stop at times."

Koh nodded that he understood.

"Like I told you before, I went to Tokyo University. There are a small number of foreign students enrolled there, and most are lacking in any advanced knowledge of the Japanese language. As to be expected, many of the courses are only taught in Japanese. One of my friends was a tutor to these students. I happened to come by one day as one of the student's was leaving. He was a beautiful young man from Italy who spoke perfect English, but was having a hard time grasping the grammatical nuances of our language."

"He had bumped into me as he was leaving. He was a bit shorter than me; as I looked down on his face all I saw was perfection: he had shiny, wavy black hair, olive skin, perfect smile, and olive eyes. I think I fell in love right then. He apologized in very broken Japanese. I'm afraid I laughed at him and made him self-conscious of his error. Seeing his embarrassed face I invited him out for lunch to make up for my laughing at him."

He stopped to sip at the tea before continuing. "We started having lunch together often after that first time. While I was studying accounting he had come to study traditional Japanese music, a course that is only taught at Tokyo University, nowhere else in Japan. He wanted to learn all the old instruments, and he loved the sound of the Koto. He was a master with the piano too, though he played mostly popular Italian music."

Kei stopped there, either a memory or a tune running though his mind. Koh patiently waited for him to continue.

Wiping a small tear from his eye he continued. "Within six months we were dating regularly and soon after that we moved in together. We couldn't have been happier. He became an instructor in ancient instruments, something he always dreamed of doing. I was so happy for him, and he was overjoyed when I got hired with Sion."

Turning to Koh he spoke softly. "There's not much more I can tell. We were together for five years. Then he was gone, and so was my life."

Koh smiled. "Thank you for telling me. I'm glad you told me, though I never would have asked you for details. I know there is more to the story, and that it is the basis of the nightmares, but if and when you are ready I know you will tell me."

Kei leaned over and gathered Koh in his arms. "This is one of the things I love about you – the fact that you can accept me without all the fine details. Perhaps one day I will be able to tell you. Right now just know that I care for you very much."

He kissed Koh gently at first, then more aggressively. Pressing him down on the sofa he began running his hands down Koh's sides and across his chest. He could feel that the both of them were hard, and he began grinding against Koh.

Koh felt the arousal rubbing against him, aggravating his erection. He finally broke the kiss and whispered, "Touch me Kei, please."

With an agility he didn't believe possible, Kei had released his erection from the confines of his clothing. The touch of his hand sent electric chills through his body; he pressed into that hand wanting more.

Before totally succumbing to the pleasure he gasped out, "Let me hold you too."

Although Koh's skill wasn't on par with Kei's, he did manage to release the object of his quest and soon was returning the pleasure he was receiving.

The sounds of heavy breathing reverberated through the room, slowly becoming moans and finally gasps for breath as both came.

Kei carefully lowered himself, being careful to keep the majority of his weight off Koh. Both were breathing hard, gasping to return to normal.

Koh regained his senses first, casually announcing, "Well, now we did it, didn't we?"

He could feel Kei's body shaking with laughter against him.

"Yeah, we sure did." And he pulled Koh over for another loving kiss.

 

[1] more information on the instrument:  
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Koto_%28instrument%29


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kei has been a cold, emotionless being for nine years, but something about Koh is melting his icy exterior.  
>  This chapter includes some possibly disturbing descriptions of violence.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentioned characters except for my original character are the property of Yamane Ayano. She graciously allows us to play with them.

Kei stood up from the couch and offered his hand to Koh. "Button up. I think we need to take a trip to the bathroom."

Neither set of their clothes had escaped the mess they had made between themselves. For Kei it was no problem since it was his home and he had clothes to change into. But Koh was visiting and needed to go home in some semblance of cleanliness.

Koh followed him to the bathroom.

"Strip. I'll put our clothes in the washer."

Koh turned his back to Kei, almost shyly removing his clothing. He could hear Kei disrobing behind him, sending shivers down his back.

"Who's taking a shower first?"

"We are."

"Wha…?!" He felt a hand on his back, gently pushing him into the shower. He heard Kei moving around in the bathroom, probably getting another towel for him to use.

Koh's body stiffened. Kei had joined him in the shower and was now washing his back.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." His hands touched Koh's hair. "It's longer when it's wet. Your boss doesn't mind the long hair?"

Recovering from the shock of another person touching him in such a personal setting he replied, "No, as long as it's clean and neat he doesn't say a thing. I usually keep it pulled back at work."

"I like it long. Keep it that way. It suits your personality."

Koh turned around to face Kei, but as he did his eyes focused immediately on the scar on the left side of his torso. "Is that what I think it is?"

He cursed to himself that he had forgotten about the gunshot wound. "Don't concern yourself with that. It's not your problem."

Tenderly running his fingers over the scar, as if it were still a fresh wound, Koh asked, "Does this mean that I have to worry about you being killed?"

Seeing the worry on Koh's face Kei lied, "It was an accident that I was wounded. And we're in here to get clean, not discuss old wounds."

Kei took advantage of Koh's position and began running the bath sponge down his torso, watching his eyes close as he did so. Encouraged by the reaction he dropped the sponge and dipped his hand lower, teasing the perineal area with gentle strokes.

A quick intake of breath alerted Kei to the increased reaction, and the hardness pressing into his stomach just added confirmation. Sliding his hand upward a bit to caress the rock-hard erection caused Koh to gasp and press his forehead against his chest. He felt a hand snaking down his abdomen toward his equally hard erection.

They coaxed each other to release, both breathless and near exhaustion after this second hard ejaculation in such a short time.

Koh tiredly asked, "Isn't this why we had to take a shower in the first place?"

Kei kissed the top of his head. "Let's clean up and get out of here before we get started again."

Koh could only nod in agreement.

While Kei started the washer filled with their dirtied clothes, Koh grabbed the bathrobe on the back of the door and put it on. Like everything else it was white. "You need more color in your life."

Dressed only in the towel around his hips Kei replied, "I think I just added some." Sweeping Koh up in his arms he carried him to the bed. "You look tired; rest here for a while."

After Kei placed him in the bed he covered him with the light-weight blanket. He snuggled down into the soft bedding and slowly his eyes closed, He felt the bed move and soon felt body warmth behind him. Kei's arms pulled him close, spooning with him. Too comfortable to fight the feeling, Koh succumbed to the closeness of the moment and slipped into a calm sleep.

Koh awoke several hours later to find he was in the bed alone. Sitting up he could see Kei, now wearing a pair of sleep pants, moving their clothes from the washer to the dryer. He walked toward the doorway but couldn't resist the urge to look in the closet on that side of the room. As he expected, it was filled with black suits; the other closet probably had the white shirts. Stifling a chuckle he continued toward the doorway and asked, "You have a dryer too?" Things like a dryer were a luxury to Koh.

"I don't have the time to spend to go to a laundromat, and I don't want to hire someone to do my laundry for me."

Koh suddenly got a mental image of Kei in his black suit, glasses sliding down his nose, hanging his underwear on a clothesline and started to giggle.

"And what's so amusing?"

"Nothing that you would find funny, I don't think." His eyes twinkled with merriment.

Kei grabbed him by the wrists and pinned him to the wall. "Are you making fun of me?" he asked in mock seriousness.

Koh saw the disguised playfulness in his eyes and countered with, "And what if I was?"

Suddenly he was firmly pressed to the wall, and a growing hardness was pushed against his abdomen. "Then I think I would have to take you to my bed and torture you into confessing what you were thinking."

Leaning forward he kissed Kei, whispering, "That's quite a tempting proposal. Sounds like it would be preferable not to confess."

Not releasing Koh's hands, Kei straightened his arms and looked directly into Koh's eyes, little worry lines creasing his forehead. "What is it about you? I've haven't felt like this about anyone since… since Dante. I'm too old to play the romantic fool."

Gently pushing out of Kei's grasp, he circled his arms around his neck. "Why do you say that? If anything, I'm the one who's having the most difficulty with this. I've never come as hard as I did tonight, and then I did it twice! I've never considered having any kind of sexual relationship with a man, but here I am, ready to crawl into that bed with you. So tell me, who's got it worse? And you're never too old for romance."

Placing his arms around Koh's waist he smiled. "Well, I guess we'll have to support each other and work this out together, won't we?" Leaning in and stealing a quick kiss he smiled wickedly and asked, "So what was so funny that made you laugh?"

Sizing up the mood that Kei was in he replied, "Since I don't know if I'm ready for another round of your torture, imagine yourself in your top-of-the-line business suit clipping your fashionable underwear to a clothesline." Koh waited for a reaction.

Kei stared at him for a moment, then started to laugh. "You were wrong, I find that very amusing."

While they were waiting for the clothes to dry Kei found a few of his favorite pieces that Dante wrote and queued them in the player and the two men sat on the sofa, enjoying the peaceful sounds filling the room. Somehow, sitting with Koh and listening to Dante's music didn't feel wrong. The music Dante created was meant to be shared, and was even more precious when shared with someone special.

Kei had finally taken the first steps in recovery.  
#=#=#=#=#

They had just finished the daily paperwork and Kirishima was readying to leave when Asami spoke, "Kei, sit down. I think we need to talk. Lately you've been out-of-sorts, like something is on your mind, keeping you from focusing 100% on you duties. Can I assume it's Koh?"

Kirishima nodded his head. "What the hell do I do Ryuu? I'm acting and feeling like a teenager. I'm a mature adult! I'm beginning to understand your reaction to Aki. When Koh's around the only thing that seems to fill my mind is getting hold of him and touching him, or kissing him, or just being with him…."

Asami offered him a drink and took a seat across from him. "Don't you remember when you first met Dante? It was much the same, wasn't it? All you wanted was to be with him. Have you considered that you are falling in love with him, that he is filling that empty niche you've been so diligently guarding in your heart?"

Kirishima removed his glasses and closed his eyes. "I've been thinking about Dante a lot lately, and not in an upsetting manner. When I told Koh about my first meeting with Dante I did it without too much pain. Even listening to his music soothed me rather than upset me. It's like Dante is encouraging me to tell Koh about us."

Putting the glass to his lips he swallowed half of the distinctive copper liquid. "But at times I feel guilty for being with Koh, it's like I see myself turning my back on Dante."

Asami shook his head. "No, you are not turning your back on Dante. That is something you know you could never do; stop thinking too much. But what you are seeing is that your future with Dante will never be, and that Koh is offering you an alternate path."

"How far have you gotten with Koh?"

Kirishima looked at Asami with surprise. "Why?"

"Bed him. That should clear a lot of the uncertainty in your mind. It will tell you which way to go Kei. Now take this pile of papers off my desk and file them wherever they belong."

Kirishima placed the now empty glass in the bar sink and picked up the papers. "Thanks Ryuu, I'll think about what you said, but I don't see how that last suggestion will solve anything."

Asami just smirked as Kirishima left the room. Oh, you'll see clearly what that solves.  
#=#=#=#

The three young men were completely immersed in an intense mission of Call of Duty when there was a knock at the door. Koh was displeased at the interruption, but put his character on hold and went to answer the door. It was Kei carrying a bag with two six-packs of beer in it. Confused as to what to do Koh asked him in, rightly thinking that asking him to leave would cause suspicion.

Looking over Koh's shoulder and into the room Kei saw the other two members of the twenty something trio sitting in front of the screen and he realized why Koh looked so strange. In a lowered voice he asked, "I didn't know you had company tonight. Should I leave before they see me?"

But before Koh could give any kind of reply Aki turned to see who was at the door.

"Kirishima, is that you? Wow, I don't think that I've ever seen you in anything other than a suit! Those slacks look good on you though – nice threads. So, what are you doing here? It can't be because of Asami; he's out of town for a few more days." A cloud passed over Aki's face. "Oh shit, did he return early? If so, I'm not going until we finish this mission."

Thinking quickly he replied, "No, Asami-sama is still away. It's just that since he is away I have some free time, and Koh and I have been running a game of Call of Duty. I come over to play when I have the time, which isn't all that often." A quick glance at Koh revealed his relief from Kei's answer.

"Uh, yeah, he' a great player; he can even beat me at some of the moves."

Aki was surprised. "You play video games with Koh?"

With a small smile Kirishima answered, "I don't know anyone else that plays video games. Suoh is all thumbs with a controller…."

While Koh and Aki laughed, Takato entered the conversation. "Well, if he's so good, then let's hand him a controller and let him prove how good he is. We could really use some help on this mission." Koh nodded in agreement and took the beer to the kitchen and put it in the fridge.

Seeing it was the easiest way to handle the situation, Kirishima sat on the sofa and took the offered controller. "I'll start with a premade character for this, if you don't mind. Koh and I are fairly advanced in our game and I want to continue it when we have another chance."

They all agreed and within a half-hour they were all heartily battling quite boisterously. Even Kirishima managed a few out-of-character battle cries now and then.

As the evening wore on their stomachs insisted on a call for pizza and had the four men rescuing the beer from its incarceration in the fridge. Kei sat with the three younger men, slowly losing his feeling of being out of place. They all accepted him as a friend, something he had never expected of them. After finishing up his beer, he announced that he had to leave. After an unsuccessful attempt to have him stay for a while longer, they thanked for joining in their fun.

Koh walked him to the door. "I know this wasn't how you wanted to spend the evening; I'm sorry."

Kei pulled Koh into the hallway, out of sight of the other two. "I had a very good time. It's not often an old man can enjoy the company of three young men. Especially one that is so very charming," he said softly while leaning in to kiss Koh. "Do you think you can free up time in the next few days for us to be alone?"

"I'll make time, like tomorrow night?" and he returned the kiss before moving back toward the door. "And just stop with the 'old man' bit, you're just more experienced than I am."

As he reentered the apartment he found that Aki and Takato were looking at him and smirking.

"What? Can't I say goodbye to a visitor?"

The two looked at each other, chuckled and in unison said in a sing-song voice, "Somebody's in love."

Koh didn't even try to formulate a reply. He knew his friends too well and understood that no matter what he managed to say they would misconstrue it into something far from what he meant. He stomped over to the console and asked, "Are we finishing this mission or what?" hoping the blush would fade by the time they joined him.  
#=#=#=#=#

Koh looked around his apartment. For a change there was little out of place. He had spent the day cleaning and trying his best to put together a dinner that was edible. Kei was a much better cook than he was – maybe it was all those extra years of having to cook his own meals that made the difference.

Koh had decided that hot pot was the simplest way to go, and yose nabe was one of the best to make. He had to borrow the hot pot from Aki since he didn't own one. Aki offered to help him make it, but other than taking him along for the shopping trip Koh insisted that he do it himself. They parted with Aki making the sly comment about Koh making up to Kirishima for not being able to get it on the night before.

He dismissed his friend's comment but really it was very close to the truth. Since that evening at Kei's apartment a few weeks ago they hadn't had the chance to get together alone and he wanted to experience those feelings again. When he got home he noticed a small bag hidden in with the groceries; on it was written, in Aki's handwriting, "You'll probably need this." The bag contained an enema.

Kei was due to arrive at any time now and Koh checked the hot pot. Everything had been added; it only needed to cook a bit longer. It had looked nicely arranged when he started the dinner and he could only hope that the vegetables would stay how he arranged them.

As he was setting out the plates the doorbell rang. Koh felt his heart flutter as he rushed to answer the door. He opened the door to see Kei standing there with a bag containing several small bottles of sake as a dinner gift. Opening the door farther to allow him in Kei took advantage of their closeness to wrap one arm around him and pull him in for a very erotic kiss. As he studied Koh's face he wondered if perhaps Ryuu's suggestion just might produce an answer to his doubts.

The dinner had come out perfectly; the arrangement stayed as it should and made for a very eye-catching meal. Both men were quite full by the time they had finished. They poured the sake for each other and settled on the sofa. Kei had brought some of Dante's music along and Koh showed him where his audio equipment was.

The music filled the room as they talked of the new exhibit of recently found photographs of the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923. They were now being displayed at the Shitamachi Museum in Ueno Park. Both were interested in seeing the exhibit and were planning to go when they could get their schedules to mesh.

As the conversation lagged Kei got bolder and put his arms around Koh. Koh was pulled into an embrace that he melted into. He eagerly placed his lips with Kei's, sliding his tongue along Kei's lips, and waited for his response. There was little wait; Kei pounced on the opportunity and had a breathless Koh under his control in seconds. Kei had managed to put Koh in a prone position and pressed his body tightly against him. His fingers slid under Koh's shirt, grazing his nipples and in turn causing shivers to run through Koh's body and butterflies to hatch in his stomach.

Kei easily shed his shirt while Koh fumbled with everything. Knowing how nervous he was Kei took his hands away from the buttons, kissed his fingers, and put them by his side. "Here, stand up. You keep your hands here while I take care of your clothes. Close your eyes."

Koh did so, and the feeling of his shirt being removed caused him to tremble, not in fear but in anticipation of what was to follow. As his T-shirt was pulled over his head he felt Kei's tongue slide across his chest, his teeth nipping randomly. As his arms were freed from the confining shirt he dropped them to encircle Kei's neck. He looked up at Kei with desire in his eyes.

Continuing to caress Koh's body he slowly backed him toward the bedroom. When he had reached the bed he gently placed Koh in the bed, moving the top covers out of the way.

Kei took a small tube from his pocket and placed it under the pillow. He stripped to his slacks and briefs earlier and now removed them. He watched as Koh's eyes targeted his groin and heard his breath hitch as the briefs hit the floor. He finished undressing Koh and now lay beside him.

He began with a kiss as passionate as the others, then moved on to trace his tongue along the edges of his ear. Koh was reciprocating with kisses and bites on his neck and chest area while his hand travelled southward, wanting to please Kei too.

Kei maneuvered the small tube to his hands and coated his fingers with the lube. Koh whimpered sweetly as Kei's finger entered him. Kei had seen the partially hidden enema package in the bathroom trash earlier, and was surprised that Koh had prepared for this. The lingering doubts he had about taking Koh tonight completely faded away now that he knew Koh had anticipated this too.

When he felt that Koh had adjusted to the single finger, he added another. There was a moment of discomfort but soon he adjusted to that too. The third was a bit rougher so Kei sought distraction by massaging the prostate gland. Koh gasped, his muscles clenching the fingers that were invading him. After a generous bit of stretching the moment of truth arrived.

Kei sat up and coated himself with the lube, and squirted a bit into Koh. "This will probably hurt the most. Are you ready?"

Koh had watched the whole sequence of events, realizing that there wasn't any turning back now. He swallowed loudly and announced that come what may, he was ready.

He had made the initial penetration, getting the head just beyond the entrance. This was the most painful part and he waited while Koh adjusted himself to this new sensation.

Beads of perspiration covered Koh's forehead and his breath was short and shallow. His hair clung to the sides of his face. His eyes were closed in a combination of concentration and pain.

Kei looked down on the beautiful face before him. "Relax and try breathing a bit deeper. Are you sure that you're OK with this?"

Koh nodded, inhaling a deep breath and holding it for a bit before releasing it. After a few more breaths he could feel himself relaxing a bit more. He could tell he had clamped onto Kei very tightly and must be causing him some discomfort.

"I'm going to move again, are you ready?"

Koh opened his eyes and smiled. "Yes."

Slowly he eased himself into the young man, keeping an eye on how he was handling the pain and how well he was breathing. When he felt him tense up too much he stopped, waiting again until he nodded that he was settled.

It had taken a while, but Kei didn't want to hurt him unnecessarily. But now that he was fully seated another problem arose. He was close to climax just by being in Koh. He tried a few slow strokes and managed to hold back, but he wasn't sure how long that would be.

Koh was soaking in the alien feeling of being filled by another. While it wasn't extreme pain, it was uncomfortable. Kei was now moving slowly and that tensed him up again. Closing his eyes and taking a few deep breaths helped, and he managed once again to loosen his grip on Kei.

He opened his eyes when he heard Kei moan. He was covered in perspiration, droplets falling on Koh's chest, and still moving slowly.

Kei cried out, "I can't hold out any more. I'm going to come!" and proceeded to flood Koh with his seed. This prompted Koh to follow suit, for he too had been trying to holding back on his own climax.

"I think we need to work on our technique because that was entirely too fast." Kei looked totally depressed.

"So what's wrong with another try? You're still in there, you know. And we have all night." Koh grabbed Kei for a mind-blowing kiss and pressed his hips forward.

Round two had begun.  
#=#=#=#=#

It had been only a few days since the night at his place and Koh's mind still focused on the minute details. Sexually it was a night to remember. He never felt like that before. If that was what it would be like with Kei… wow. He was a great kisser too. But the thrill wasn't just the sex. He could be comfortable with the man just doing the dishes.

But Koh needed to know exactly what was in Kei's past that made him so distraught at times. He knew it had to do with Dante's death, and the only thing that came to mind was that he had witnessed it. That would cause him nightmares if he happened to see someone he loved die. The only person around now that knew him when it happened was Asami, as far as he could find out. He would have to see if he could meet with Asami without Kei knowing about it. That was no easy task when he handled all of Asami's calls and appointments.

He got a lucky break a few days later when Kei told him that he was scheduled to meet with the general accountants at one of Asami's other clubs and would be gone all day and probably wouldn't be able to keep their dinner date. It was the perfect time to see if Asami could meet with him.

Since the episode when he couldn't get in easily to speak with Kirishima he had been given a special black Sion card; it symbolized that the bearer had a personal invitation from Asami Ryuichi. No other information was needed. He used it to get in touch with Suoh to see if Asami was the person he should talk to about Kirishima. Suoh confirmed that Asami was the only person to ask, since he was just a new hire at that time. He then called Asami to see if he was open to see Koh anytime during the day. Both were surprised when Asami said to bring Koh into the private office right away.

Bowing in respect Koh spoke softly. "Thank you for seeing me on such short notice, Asami-sama."

Waving a hand toward the nearest armchair Asami spoke, "Please sit down. I know why you are here. You want to confirm your suspicions about Kirishima and his involvement with Dante's death, correct?"

Koh seated himself in the leather armchair, looking Asami in the eye. "Yes, and I do believe that you know all the details, but you also know that I cannot ask him because of those details. In order to help him I need some answers."

Asami offered Koh a drink, but he requested a glass of ginger ale instead. He poured himself a bourbon.

"Yes, that is correct, on both points." Asami sat in the armchair opposite, sipping his bourbon. "You have won his confidence, and surprisingly his love, something I didn't think could ever be done again. Somehow you have pulled him out of the emotionless world he has lived in since Dante's death. Normally I don't discuss anyone's personal history but in this case I can see that it is necessary. I truly believe that you can help Kirishima."

"After Dante's death his personality did a 180. Before Dante died he was a lot like you or Aki; full of life, cheerful, and very much in love. He and Dante were made for each other. Although they had different cultural backgrounds they had much in common in other things. Both had a love of art and music; Dante wrote and played, Kirishima listened and enjoyed. They regularly frequented art galleries and museums, spending hours there only to go home and discuss what they had seen for several more hours."

"And everything was fine until Dante's death, correct?" Figuring that the answer would be yes Koh asked, "What was the turning point, did he see Dante die?"

"If that was all that happened it would have been tolerable, but it was much more than that. I won't go into explicit details that you don't need or want to know, but trust me, they are brutal."

Asami put his head down, as if he were deep in thought. Straightening up he took a deep breath and looked Koh directly in the eyes. "He was forced to watch him be tortured and killed. The animal that killed Dante hated gays, and he had his eye on the two of them. My men were just in time to save Kei but unfortunately Dante was already dead by the time they got there."

Tears filled Koh's eyes. "As I thought. The nightmares – he's been recalling the whole episode every time. I was afraid it was something like that, but I had truly hoped I was wrong." Koh sat quietly, taking in all the repercussions of that terrible bit of information.

Asami had gone to the bar and poured two drinks. He walked over to Koh and stopped in front of him. "Here, I think you could use this now."

Koh reached up and took the glass from Asami. "Thanks, I think so too."

Asami seated himself once again in the opposite armchair, watching Koh as he digested all the information he had just received. Koh sat in silence for a bit longer, putting together all the little idiosyncrasies he had encountered since he had been spending time with Kei.

"This explains so much. He's been taking me to places that they visited, probably on a regular basis. He said he hadn't gone to the zoo in a long time. The matron at the Japanese restaurant, she was surprised to see him with someone. The trips to the museums…. These are just some of the things I didn't know. And I inadvertently did things that upset him, like listening to the music he had set up. I mentioned that the artist was brilliant. That's when I found out that Dante wrote and performed it. I couldn't apologize enough. I felt so horrible, but there was no way I could have known. After that he told me a bit about Dante and how they met. He did allow me to hear more, and it was beautiful; we sat on the sofa and listened to several pieces together."

It was Asami's turn to look surprised. "He just took that music out of storage a few weeks ago. He hasn't played or listened to that since before Dante died, and for him to willingly share it…. All of their personal belongings are still in storage. That was the first thing he ever asked for and removed."

"I wonder…" Koh turned toward Asami, "He probably had retrieved the music just days before I found it. That was why he was so upset at what I did." Koh looked at Asami with a questioning gaze. "Why are his things in storage?"

'Kei was hospitalized for several weeks after Dante's death, partially due to injuries. I personally packed and stored all of their possessions. I bought the apartment building, had it razed and a small park was put in its place as a memorial; with his mental state he couldn't be allowed back there. He was in therapy for almost a year before he could function normally again, and lived with me for almost two years before he finally felt he could go out on his own again." Asami stopped to sample his drink.

"No, normal isn't the word for how he functioned. He went through the motions of a normal person, but inside he was empty, and has been until he found you."

"You mentioned that he had injuries. Would that happen to include the small scars around his eyes? There are so many."

Asami nodded. "They are from the beating he was given. They were both beaten with the buckle end of the attacker's belt. Kirishima had perfect vision until then. Now the glasses are a daily reminder of what happened."

Koh gasped, remembering the odd look on Kei's face that one day, just before they went to the Japanese Inn. "I don't think I need or want any more information. Just the small bits you gave me are hard to swallow, and more than enough to understand exactly what I have to deal with. He's had quite a burden to bear, hasn't he?"

Asami returned to the bar to freshen his drink. "But if anyone can help him bear that burden it is you. I've seen such startling changes in him over the past month that I never thought would come about. You're good for him Koh. Teach him to live again. He deserves a better life than he was forced to live."

Koh rose from the chair and placed the empty glass on the bar with a shaky hand. "Thank you for giving me the information I needed. I didn't know who else to turn to. I have a lot to think about so I won't take any more of your time." Koh offered his hand to Asami and again thanked him for his assistance.

Asami shook his hand firmly and asked, "Would you like a ride home? I can send you back with Suoh. I think it would be a wise decision, and you needn't worry about Kirishima; he will be at the branch office for at least another four hours."

After a slight hesitation he accepted the offer of the ride. Right now he didn't want to be near anyone. He had to clear his mind of other less important things and concentrate on what he could do to help Kei.

Asami watched as Koh left the office. He had no proof, but he had the feeling that Kei had taken his advice, and that he had made the right decision in choosing to stay with Koh.

TBC


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kei has been a cold, emotionless being for nine years, but something about Koh is melting his icy exterior.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentioned characters other than my original character are the property of Yamane Ayano. She graciously allows us to play with them.

**Chapter 5**

The three men exited the elevator and walked briskly down the hallway. Suoh took up the guard position at the door to the penthouse while Kirishima and Asami entered.

Tossing the bloodied jacket to the floor, Asami bellowed, "Why do they always think that it would be easy to pull the wool over my eyes? Haven't I left enough examples of what happens to fools that think like that?"

Bending to pick up the jacket Kirishima replied, "There is always going to be someone that thinks he's lucky enough to be the one that is going to best you. And it won't matter how many bodies line the way to your doorstep." Retrieving a trash bag from the kitchen he called over his shoulder, "I'll need your shirt and slacks too. Are the shoes stained?"

Asami looked down as he continued to disrobe. "Yes, so we may as well dispose of all of it."

After stripping down to bare skin Asami headed toward the bathroom for a needed shower, leaving the clothing in a pile on the floor. When he returned to the living room he noticed Kirishima had settled at the desk in the study and was busy cleaning their guns. The trash bag was neatly tied and sitting by the door.

"Thanks, but I could have done that." Asami picked up the trash bag and opened the door. He gave Suoh instructions and dismissed him for the rest of the evening. He then turned and walked toward the bar.

Kirishima continued cleaning the weapons, not glancing up at his boss while he replied, "It's not a big deal Ryuu. I had nothing to do until you finished your shower."

With a different tone in his voice Asami asked, "Would you care to join me for a drink, Kei?"

Placing the gun on the desk blotter he looked toward Asami. "After tonight's activities I think it would be very welcome. And I was wondering how long it would take before you would get around to questioning me."

Asami smiled as he offered Kei his drink. "What gave me away, the tone of my voice? And did I fall within your time frame?"

Taking the drink Kirishima cocked his head. "Your voice broadcasts your thoughts, though no one else seems to notice. And no, Ryuu, you actually took longer than I anticipated. Were you hoping the issue would go away if you ignored it long enough?"

"Quite the contrary. I was giving you enough time to make certain of your feelings. I have never pressured you, you know that, and I never will. But you've never ever considered taking a lover since Dante, you cut your feelings off to the world. And your choice was completely unexpected – I was taken by surprise. " Asami seated himself on the sofa and motioned for Kirishima to sit.

"I've also had a talk with Koh, and I'm satisfied that the feelings are mutual. He is a very sharp young man, highly intelligent. Take care around him or he'll have you eating out of his hand. In that sense he's a lot like Aki. And I take it that you took my advice?"

A smile lit up Kirishima's face from Asami's comments, he didn't need to give a reply. "It's all your fault, you know. You and Aki. Do you know how many times I've had to go home and take a cold shower?" he joked. "But seriously, the two of you ignited those feelings that I had kept under control for the past nine years, and Koh, well somehow he just fanned the flames."

Asami paled at the final comment, realizing exactly what Kirishima meant. He had been very careful not to bring anyone home when Kei lived with him; all his affairs were held either in the other person's apartment or in a hotel. "I do apologize for being insensitive to your feelings. I should have realized that certain things will resurrect bad memories. But why Koh? Did you see something of Dante in him that made you desire him? Or is it that you liked his similarity to Aki?"

He shook his head. "Other than being the same age as when I lost Dante there is nothing of Dante in him. I don't think I could take the pain of being with someone resembling but not being Dante. Those wounds will never heal, I've accepted that." He lowered his head and spoke softly, "Even after all these years I still have the nightmares. Not as often but they haven't stopped. Even once, when I was with Koh…." He quickly downed the rest of the drink before heading to the bar to pour another.

"And yes and no as to his being like your Aki; he's got a pure soul, a vibrant personality full of life, and an innocence that we lost so long ago we can never fully recall it. He is the perfect complement for the darkness I carry within me, much like Aki is for you. Although they are close friends he is very different than Aki. He is much deeper than he appears; on the surface he is quite carefree and easy going, but going deeper he can be extremely serious at times. We have had some extraordinary conversations about the most varied things – art, books, music, even theatre. The two of them have completely different tastes and personalities. Aki still holds the drive that earned him the juvie record."

Swirling the ice in his drink Asami asked, even though he knew the answer, "Did you tell him about Dante?"

Kirishima studied his drink. "A bit, but not everything. He realized that I had a lover in the past and that he died, so I gave him a bit of how we met; even that was difficult. He also knows that there is more to the story but he doesn't pry for more information. I'm still not even sure that I can tell the full story without falling apart, though there is something about him that dulls the pain of those memories. But in the beginning if it wasn't for you I'd never.…"

"I know, but let's not dwell on that. We're even on that score. And I believe that he knows more about you and Dante than you think." As Kirishima gave a questioning look toward Asami, silence enveloped the two men.

Asami smiled sadly and broke the silence first. "Koh and Aki are the same ages as when we first met."

With a lopsided smile Kirishima replied, "But luckily not in the same circumstances."

"Yeah," smirked Asami, and both men smiled softly and grew silent again as they allowed the memories of their first meeting to replay in their minds.

**Ten years ago**

The weather had turned for the worse; the rain had been falling since noon but had changed to snow as the sun went down and was getting heavier as time passed. This looked to be an extremely cold and snowy winter this year; it was only December and this was the third snow. A few centimeters of slushy snow was on the ground already and there was no sign of it letting up soon. The temperature had plummeted too, hovering around -5°C [23°F].

Kirishima hurried toward the Shibuya train station for his trip home. He had stopped in the shopping area to purchase a gift for his mother – her birthday was in two days. There were many specialty boutiques here that had the types of items he was considering as a gift for her. After finding the perfect gift, a beautiful orchid silk floral-printed haori, he made arrangements to have it delivered on her birthday, along with a bouquet of bright pink roses, her favorite.

Pink roses were also perfect in another way; the color represented gentle love and gratitude, a small representation of what he felt for his mother. As a widow she had worked hard for years to put him through school and later on to help with University costs. Even though he had obtained a scholarship to Tokyo University, there was still the cost of housing, food, and transportation. He had gotten a part time job but it fell short on covering all the bills.

With his mind on how his mother would receive the gift he walked vacantly toward the station. But as he was passing one of the side alleys that ran behind the stores, he heard what sounded like a pained moan coming from further back in the alley. Against his better judgment he entered the darkness, calling out softly, "Hello, is anyone here?"

At first all he heard were his footsteps in the wet, slushy snow, but then a faint gasp came from behind a dumpster. There was a hint of light in the area, and what he saw frightened him; the slush on the ground was splattered with blood. Gathering his courage he looked behind the dumpster. A man lay atop a pile of crumpled cardboard boxes, what little clothing he wore was soaking wet and tattered, as if slashed by a knife, and not meant for these temperatures. He was covered in blood and barely conscious. He looked like he was a victim of a robbery that ended with dire consequences.

Rushing over to the man he checked his condition; his pulse was weak, his lips were blue, and his breathing was slow and shallow, but what was worse is that the man was still losing body heat, and rapidly. Staying here much longer would most likely kill him due to hypothermia. He could see no wound that would cause the blood loss so it must be under him, but he was in too dangerous a shape to be moved carelessly. The advanced first aid training course that he took at the University told him that much.

Kirishima carefully placed his overcoat across the man's upper torso for some meager warmth and his scarf under his head to raise it off the wet ground. While reaching for his cell phone he asked, "Who did this to you? You need medical treatment immediately. I'll call the police…."

With the little strength he had the man grabbed the cell phone away from Kirishima, who looked quite puzzled at the action. He had heard a grating sound as the man had moved, a clear sign of broken bones, and a wrenching gasp echoed the pain caused by the movement.

"If you call police…" he wheezed in a slurred voice, "they… more interested in me… than finding who… anyway… I know… they'll pay…."

He started to cough as a trickle of blood escaped from the corner of his mouth. "… right jacket pocket… cell phone… first name... they'll help… just stay… please?"

Kirishima watched as the man then collapsed into unconsciousness. Wasting no time he found the cell phone in the man's pocket, pulled up the contacts and called the first name.

A gravelly voice answered, "Yeah boss?"

Not sure of what to say he just started to ramble. "I've found a man badly beaten in an alley not far from the Shibuya train station. He's in very serious condition but doesn't want me to call the police. He said you would help. Please, I think he's losing blood and his body temperature is dropping at an alarming rate."

A tinge of panic laced through the voice on the phone. "We're on our way. On which end of the station is the alley?"

After giving the man the best directions he could, he squatted down beside the injured man and waited. Alternately taking both of the man's hands he briskly massaged his wrists, hoping to transfer some heat to the man's bloodstream. The scarf had lifted his head and neck away from the icy water that was running down the cardboard boxes. It didn't take long, maybe ten -fifteen minutes for the help to arrive, but for this part of town that in itself was a miracle.

Kirishima was confused by the mass of people that arrived. It wasn't just the man he had spoken to on the phone, but also about a dozen very scary looking men and a box van full of medical equipment and an emergency medical team. He stepped aside to allow the crew to work on saving the life of the man he had found. The extra men seemed to be searching the alley for clues as to what had happened to this man, who evidently was their boss. He wasn't sure if he really wanted to get mixed up in what looked like either gang or yakuza business and he had done as asked by honoring the man's request to remain until help came. Feeling that he had done his duty to the best of his ability, he turned and left the alley, heading into the crowds toward the train station and the trip home.

By the time the help he had recruited realized he had gone he was halfway home. He was cold; although his suit was made of heavy wool by no means was it meant for -5°C weather. Luckily he never carried his keys or any valuables in his overcoat or he never would have gotten into his apartment that night. As it was his suit was saturated from the snow melting from his body heat as he waited for the help to arrive, and his shoes and socks had suffered a similar fate.

He immediately headed for the shower to warm up, keeping the temperature a bit lower than normal since he was so chilled. Wrapped in flannel pajamas, a thick terry bathrobe, and his house slippers he felt a bit warmer after the shower. He went into the kitchen to put water on for tea; it was then he realized that the man had taken his cell phone. It must have fallen somewhere beside the man because he hadn't seen it when he returned the man's phone to his pocket. He hadn't gotten the name of the man he called either, not that it would have helped much, and he there was no name on the box truck. He had no way of contacting any of those people to see if he could get his phone back, that is if it was even in working condition. If it had fallen into the icy water it was done for.

For being such an uneventful day the evening had seen him hopefully save a victim of violence, lose his phone, and worse, caused the loss of his favorite overcoat, though if it helped save the man it was worth the loss. But if the rescue team was able to help the man he wondered if maybe someone would find his phone and try to return it. The coat probably wouldn't be able to be salvaged after soaking up the dirty melted snow in the alley, and he didn't remember putting any information about himself in the phone memory. No, he'd still have to go shopping tomorrow after work; the cell phone was necessary for work, but luckily he did have a backup coat.

The next day arrived bright and shiny. There was a small depth of snow on the ground, but according to the weather person the temperature would rise high enough to melt most of it by the time to go home. That sounded fine with him. If he had to go trudging around trying to find a new phone he didn't want to do it with wet feet. Last night was enough.

Kirishima worked in an office that handled the bookkeeping for one of a string of popular night clubs. As one of the head accountants, he was well on his way up the ladder of success. The morning passed with incident, but just before he was to go to lunch several strange people came in to see his supervisor. He noticed that one of them had pointed toward him, and suddenly got a chill – he looked like the gentleman that he had called last night to help the man in the alley. How did he find him, and more importantly, what did he want?

He soon found out. His supervisor brought the three men over to his desk, looking very excited. He bowed to Kirishima while explaining, "Kirishima-san, these gentlemen are here to escort you to a meeting with the owner of our company, at the owner's personal request." Kirishima had heard of the owner but never met him., Even though he was the owner of a string of night clubs in the area, including this one, he was supposedly as young as he was.

Kirishima rose and bowed to his supervisor, then to the men. The one that he recognized identified himself as Nakashima, his friends as Kimura and Matsumoto. They walked to the elevator and exited in the garage area of the building. When they reached the car Kirishima realized that it was a Mercedes, quite an expensive luxury car for someone in Japan. This must be the owner's car. Perhaps the person that he found last night was a friend of his and he wants to thank him.

His curiosity was overwhelming him, and despite Nakashima being larger and heavier than him and definitely having the air of a mobster, he had to ask, "Nakashima-san, how did you find me?"

Nakashima turned and smiled. "That's right, I almost forgot about this. Here." He reached into his jacket pocket and handed Kirishima his phone. "We found this last night. We were going to give it to you but somehow you had gotten away from us. I guess we were too preoccupied at the time. We tracked you down by the phone number."

Kirishima took the phone, actually glad that he got it back. He flipped it open and it turned on promptly, the bad weather hadn't rendered it useless. With a slight bow of his head he thanked Nakashima for returning it. He kept quiet for the rest of the ride, content to view the city as the car sped on to its destination. It wasn't often a mere salaryman got to ride in such a luxury car.

Finally the car slowed and pulled into another underground garage. Following the men into the elevator Kirishima was surprised when the doors opened to what looked like a hospital wing. Now he was really confused. Perhaps the president was visiting the injured man, and wanted him to meet the person who saved him.

They traveled down one long hallway, turned, and now stood before a closed door; two men stood on either side of the door as guards. There was something very strange about the scene, and it bothered him to the bone. Maybe he wasn't so far off thinking that they were gangsters or part of the local yakuza branch.

Nakashima knocked and opened the door after a soft voice answered. Kirishima entered the room and immediately fixed his eyes on the figure in the bed. There were no sheets or bedding covering his body except a single sheet across his lower body; he was cleaned up, but small injuries were scattered about his face. On the other hand his body was almost completely bandaged or cast, and there were tubes and wires everywhere. A full bank of machines lined the opposite side of the bed. He looked very tired. What looked to be a private nurse stood to one side.

Nakashima advanced to the bedside and bowed. "Asami-sama, we have brought Kirishima-san as you asked, the man who saved your life."

Asami-sama? This is the owner?

In a raspy voice he heard him say, "Please, come close. I need to thank you."

Slowly advancing to the bed Kirishima tried to calm his nervousness. Bowing deeply he kept his head lowered as he spoke.

"There is no need for that Asami-sama. I did what any considerate person would do in the same situation. One must have compassion for his fellow man. I am just pleased that I found you in time."

"I understand you work for one of my companies. So you are my loyal employee also." His voice was harsh and low – it seemed that it was painful for him to talk.

"Yes sir."

"Your coat was ruined last night, but it was an important part of my being here today. Nakashima will go with you to get a replacement. It is the least I can do for you. He gave you back your phone?"

"Thank you sir, and yes, he returned it."

Asami then nodded to Nakashima and the group exited the hospital room. Kirishima was still in shock of the fact he had saved the owner's life. They were in the Mercedes before he finally put together some questions.

"Nakashima-san, he will be alright, won't he? Was he wounded badly? I know he had broken bones – I could hear them grind when he tried to move last night."

"Asami-sama will recover in time but it will take him several months. Yes, he had several broken bones, but no wounds to mention, just a lot of small cuts and scrapes." Changing the subject Nakashima asked, "Do you have a preference where you would like to get the new coat, or should I just take you to one of the shops that Asami-sama frequents?"

He had bought the coat several years ago at a closeout sale of a designer shop. He had no idea where to buy another one, he just knew that he liked the one he had. It was a tan cashmere single breasted style and extremely warm – and equally expensive, even at the clearance price he paid.

"The shop where I bought it is no longer is business, so if you know of some place that has similar coats I would appreciate it if you took me there."

Kirishima was shocked when he saw the name of the boutique they were about to enter – Georgio Armani! One of these coats would cost him a month's salary or more. He tried to suggest some other, less expensive outlet to find a coat, but Nakashima turned a deaf ear and held the door open for Kirishima.

"The boss wants the best for you; he is indebted to you. This is only a drop of gratitude that he wishes to bestow on you. You will also need a scarf for the coat, and gloves if you wish. Take your time and choose what you want." Nakashima settled himself in one of the chairs after motioning the manager over.

"Asami-sama wants a coat for the gentleman. Please assist him in choosing something adequate. He needs a cashmere coat and scarf. Do not bother him with price since it will be paid by Asami-sama."

The manager nodded in assent and made his way to Kirishima, who was looking at the coats with interest but becoming frustrated that he couldn't find a price tag on any of them.

"I am Shimizu, the manager here. I have been instructed to assist you in finding a replacement overcoat, cashmere I have been told, with a complementary scarf. If you will please be seated I will bring you a few samples for your approval." Shimizu eyed Kirishima up and down, mentally figuring out his size. "You are a bit shorter than Asami-sama and lighter in weight; let me see what we have in your size."

Kirishima sat nervously while waiting for the manager to return, looking around the shop for anything that might be in his price range. Maybe he could afford the scarf. While his thoughts were on what, if anything, he could buy in the boutique, the manager had returned with a rolling rack carrying seven or eight coats in different colors.

Kirishima's eyes went straight to the navy blue overcoat. The tailoring was exquisite on the single breasted coat. The styling was very close to his old coat, but that one hadn't been an Armani. Seeing his interest the manager removed the coat from its hanger and held it for Kirishima to try on.

As he stood in front of the mirror admiring how well the coat looked on him the manager had returned and placed a snow white scarf around his neck, carefully tucking it under the lapels of the coat. "This is not a matching scarf, but I like the contrast of color on you. Take a look, Sir." The manager then stood back to allow Kirishima to take in the full effect of the outfit.

Kirishima wanted this coat. This was a coat that a successful salaryman would wear. With a pair of aviator sunglasses on a bright winter day he would be the envy of the office. The white scarf covered his neck in warmth while accenting the fine lapel lines of the coat. On colder days he could flip up the lapels on the coat and the scarf would cover his ears.

A tinge of guilt for desiring such an expensive coat ran through his system. Dreading the reply he would get, in a small voice he asked, "How much?"

The manager had been expecting the question and answered with a smile, "It has been taken care of Sir. If you don't mind waiting a short while, we can adjust the sleeves for you. Kirishima had noticed that everything else about the coat seemed to fit perfectly. I'll have some refreshments sent in for you while you wait." After marking a line on each of the sleeves he then held out his hands to take the coat for alterations.

It took less than an hour to adjust the sleeves on the coat, and Kirishima decided that he wanted to wear it home. They wrapped his old coat for him and he left the store with Nakashima.

Being almost quitting time it was too late to return to work and Nakashima offered to take him home. But during the drive home one point kept coming back to him: Nakashima said Asami-san had no major wounds. There were did all the blood come from? Had he managed to wound the attacker? He wanted to ask him about it but the man didn't look like someone who would discuss something like that with a nobody like him. He had most likely saved Asami's life but that didn't make him privy to know everything about him.

Kirishima thanked him and climbed the steps to his apartment, amazed at the events of the day. It had been such a shock to realize that he had saved his boss' life. The young man was very handsome too, despite the numerous scratches and bruises on his face.

He would have to tell Dante all about this when he returned from Italy. Christmas wasn't a huge holiday in Japan but for Dante and his family it was. He would spend the holiday with his family in Italy but always made sure he was home in Japan for the New Year's celebration.

He went about heating up some leftovers for dinner and settled on the sofa to watch the news while he ate. There, on the screen, was the answer to his question. The headline story was about finding the body of a known gangster in an alley near Shibuya Station – he had been shot to death. Even more startling than how the person died was the video of the alley. It was the alley where he found Asami; the wall of graffiti was the same but other things were different. The boxes where he had found his boss weren't there – stacks of heavy crates covered the area where the boxes should have been. The dumpsters were still lined up but there seemed to be more of them, and they were covering the area that had the bloodied snow, but that was now bare ground. The snow that continued to fall during the night had neatly covered the activity that had taken place there. Only he knew what it had looked like before they… then realization hit – they were gangsters!

His mind flew back to all the people that had arrived with Nakashima. They were looking for something – or someone! They reset the whole scene in the alley after he left. His thoughts were in a whirl. Did they kill the man? Had he been the one to injure Asami? A darker thought entered his mind: had Asami managed somehow to shoot and kill his attacker before collapsing on the stack of boxes? That would explain the blood on the front of his shirt and on the ground. But where had the body been when he found Asami? And where was the gun? He hadn't seen anything like any kind of weapon when he was in the alley, but then his attention had been on Asami.

He had heard rumors in the cafeteria that Asami was some sort of up-and-coming gangster, but he had filed them away as just rude, vicious thoughts of the employees. Rumors like that were common no matter where you worked. In fact, some people got a sadistic enjoyment making up lies about others. But now, after what he had seen, there seemed to be a bit of truth to that rumor. The guards at the hospital had alarmed him, and taking the rumors into account, made them quite necessary to be at the hospital, especially if someone had tried to murder Asami rather than just rob him as he had originally thought.

He had long forgotten the news. All those little bits and pieces that had bothered him lined up in a neat little row to paint a rather shady picture of his boss.

**Back to present day**

"You still have my scarf, don't you? I've seen you wear it occasionally," Kirishima cast a sideways look at Asami.

"So what if I do have it? It's a nice scarf and goes well with my one overcoat. I like it."

Kirishima grinned. "No sentimentality attached to it, no bad memories?"

Asami had a flustered look on his face. He needed to change the subject, and fast. "You never did explain why you didn't turn down the offer to be my assistant. I had the feeling you were a bit afraid of me."

"You never explained why I found you outside all but naked."

Asami grimaced. "That's a long story that you will NEVER know."

Kirishima chuckled. "All right, I won't ask. But I've always thought that somebody dangled the right sexual bait in front of you and lured you into a perfect trap. And if that's the case I suppose you were lucky to be wearing any clothes."

The glare from Asami would melt glass. "Keep your fantasies to yourself, Kei. Like I'd fall for something like that."

"Uh-huh! Back then rumor had it that you would chase after anything that looked like it would hold still long enough for you to mount it. And if I recall correctly, soon after that word got around that you started getting a bit more careful with whom you brought home.'

Asami sighed indignantly. Ignoring the ramblings from his friend he sharply asked, "I asked you a question and you haven't answered it yet."

"Oh, I'm a little too close to the truth?" Kei chuckled when Asami narrowed his eyes and glowered at him with a sideways glance.

"OK. So why did I accept? At first I was afraid that if I didn't agree I'd wind up like that gangster in the alley. But after being with you for a while I realized that you weren't that bad a person, you just had some bad habits and an alternative way of making money. And you accepted my lifestyle with Dante; that made all the difference. Of course, at the time I didn't realize that you were of the same persuasion."

Kei got up and made another drink. "When you first offered me the job I thought that it was just gratitude for saving your life, like that beautiful coat. But as time wore on and you relied on more of my skills I began to see that you actually had put a lot of thought into placing me in that position. I thank you for that."

"You're welcome. We've had a few good years."

"Hm, and if our luck holds, we will have quite a few more. It's been a long night. I think I'm heading for home after I finish this. See you in the morning?"

Asami smirked. "Make it afternoon. I know Koh is waiting for you."

With a knowing grin Kirishima answered, "Yes, Asami-sama."

"Go home," Asami smiled. Finally Kirishima had gotten past that last stumbling block. He still lived with his past, but he no longer lived in it, thanks to Koh.  
#=#=#=#=#

TBC


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kei has been a cold, emotionless being for nine years, but something about Koh is melting his icy exterior.
> 
> Extreme graphic violence, torture, rape, death (OC) This is a shorter chapter but very intense.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentioned characters other than my original character are the property of Yamane Ayano. She graciously allows us to play with them.

**Chapter 6**

Asami knew by the ringtone that the call was from Nakashima. He had just finished the first round with the luscious young thing in his bed and was readying for the next go-round. Annoyed by the interruption, Asami answered the phone briskly, "It better be important."

"Sir, we've had a disturbance down at warehouse 4. We caught two suspects and killed another when he tried to get away; we've found a dead body and another man injured. We called in our ambulance squad."

Irritation tinted Asami's words. "I should think you can handle something like that. Why did you call in our people?"

"The injured man is Kirishima, sir. And the dead man is his companion Dante."

Asami's blood ran cold. "I'm on my way." Grabbing some clothes to wear he ordered the young man to be gone by the time he returned.

Asami arrived soon after their emergency squad. He could see that they had put Kirishima on one of the collapsible gurneys and moved him over to the box van. Several techs were going over him, examining his injuries. His clothes were tattered and he had blood all over his face, arms, and torso; he was still thrashing about trying to get off the gurney. The horror he had gone through was etched on his face. He called Nakashima over to get the basics of what had happened. As Nakashima started to explain there were suddenly scuffling sounds of running and people shouting coming from the warehouse. Several gunshots rang out, followed by a blood curdling scream, which in turn was silenced by several more gunshots.

Turning to Nakashima he ordered him to activate the decoy in Warehouse 3 as fast as he could and to seal the entrance to this warehouse tight as a drum. With the gunshots he knew the police would eventually be here, and he didn't want them finding out what had happened here before he had managed to sort it out himself. All his guards used silencers to avoid such problems. Nakashima quickly ordered several of the men to head over to Warehouse 3 while he organized the sealing here. When the police did arrive they would be led to Warehouse 3 which looked like a shipment of assorted types of fireworks had been broken into and several of the noisemaker type had been set off by young vandals before being chased from the premises.

When Asami finally got inside the building he saw one of his men standing in front of a kneeling Kirishima, trying to pry a gun from his hand. Kirishima, his tears mingling with the blood coming from around his eyes, was screaming incoherently, hell blazing from those eyes and aimed at the corpse of a man on the floor in front of him, the inhuman animal that had killed Dante. The target of that gaze was now soaked with blood; Kirishima had shot him in the crotch first, then through both his eyes.

Kirishima was crazed with grief. Asami rushed to his side, first assisting his man in disarming him, then putting his arms around Kirishima to try to calm him. He would find out whose gun he had managed to get and deal with that person later, but for right now he had to get Kirishima under control. As he held him he saw the covered body on the floor a short distance away, blood slowly seeping from under the blanket. With a motion he ordered them to get the body away from there before Kirishima could see it again.

He slowly eased his way toward the EM techs so that they could sedate him and treat his wounds. Asami was concerned about the bleeding from his eyes. Whatever sedative they used worked quickly, and once he was convinced that Kirishima was calmed enough to leave alone with the techs he strode over to the remaining assailant.

The man knew exactly who was standing in front of him. Most of the lesser groups and even the independents were watching Ryuichi Asami's rise in the underworld, evidently with the blessings of the local yakuza. He had started off in legitimate business, owning a string of night clubs inherited with his father's untimely and questionable death. But while managing those clubs they became the cover for his making strong connections with various people in influential positions, mostly by capitalizing on skeletons they kept in their closets. He also had countless local officials and politicians in his pocket, acquired much the same way, and held quite a bit of influence with the police department. With his connections he was a valuable source for the yakuza – a legitimate businessman with all the right type of contacts. No one crossed the man. His minions were loyal to death. Despite his good looks and charm he was as cold and hard as Antarctic ice.

Asami looked down on the man. "What's your name?"

He also knew that he didn't dare to stray one hair from the truth. He was a dead man if he did, and in this situation he probably was dead already. "Hayashi Saburo, Asami-sama."

"You know me, good; that should make things easier. What went on here? You will tell me the truth or I will make what's left of your life a living hell until you do."

Nodding his head to the now very dead man he said in a very shaky voice, "Toro wanted to scare them, mess them up a bit. He'd seen them several times and knew they were homos. Gorou and me went along with it; we figured we'd rough them up a bit, maybe intimidate them some, nothing too serious. We didn't know he was gonna kill them! And if' we'd known they were your guys we woulda had no part in it." He stopped to swallow noisily. His body was trembling violently, and his voice was quite shaky.

In a voice that would freeze a flame Asami said, "Continue."

Hayashi took a deep breath before continuing. "Toro had us tie them up then he began smacking them around with his belt. When he started to work just on the foreign guy me and Gorou worked the other guy over, then tied him to the post, figuring Toro was about done with the foreign guy. But then Toro stripped off the guy's pants and started fondling him, asking him if it felt good. He had a piece of pipe he picked up off the floor and raped the guy with it. He asked if we wanted a piece of him but we both declined; this was way more than we had bargained for. We wanted him to let them go but he said he wasn't done having fun with them yet. The guy he raped was bleeding pretty badly, he'd been really rough on him with that pipe."

Tears were falling from Hayashi's eyes now. "Toro was running his knife down the foreign guy's body, carving lines down from his chest towards his crotch, threatening each time to cut off his dick. The other guy there was sobbing and pleading for him to stop, saying that they didn't do anything to him and not to hurt him anymore and that this was wrong. The foreign guy seemed to have said something or passed out and that seemed to set Toro off. Before we knew what he was doing he'd cut the guy's throat. The screams that the other guy let loose musta alerted your guys – Toro was slicing off his clothes and threatening to do the same to him when your guys arrived. Gorou started to run but your guys cut him down."

Tears were flowing freely now. "I didn't want to do any of this, honest. We couldn't have stopped him even if we tried."

Asami looked down coldly on Hayashi. "Thank you for the truth Hayashi. You've earned an easy death."

The faint glimmer of hope that had crossed Hayashi's tear-streaked face faded as Asami placed his silenced gun to Hayashi's forehead and pulled the trigger.

The fish in Tokyo Bay fed well on the three attackers, along with the evidence that needed to be destroyed. Asami had fabricated a story of some fireworks being set off by kids in the empty building and had some believable debris set up to substantiate the lie. Even the smell of gunpowder drifted through the air. The police chief was fairly new and had his doubts but the evidence they had assembled was too strong to doubt. But he recalled hearing a similar excuse before from Asami, and the evidence looked strangely familiar. Asami made a mental note that he would need to find or arrange something to make this new police chief more cooperative and understanding when called to the docks. Blackmail seemed to be the easiest way to go.

The next few days were a nightmare. Kirishima was still hospitalized and probably would be for several weeks. The lashes he had taken from the belt buckle had fractured the eye sockets and damaged his vision. He would be able to see but only with corrective lenses. The real problem was mental – he had just witnessed the brutal torture and murder of his life partner, and had been half a step from having the same done to him.

The cause of Dante's death was exsanguination, blood loss. Asami personally handled all the funeral arrangements. A story had been fabricated to give the illusion that he had been attacked by thieves – necessary since his parents knew nothing of his sexual preference. After introducing himself as Dante's friend from the University he expressed his condolences to Dante's family. Asami made arrangements with the Italian Consulate for Dante's body to be shipped home. He had obtained the name of the funeral home where the body was to be laid out. Asami had already had the pre-burial procedures taken care of but he needed to speak to the undertaker about certain details. So through a trusted translator he gave the undertaker his conditions: the family was not to know about the torture and mutilation. It was bad enough that he had been killed in a foreign country, but to hear that there was something like that done to their son would only cause more grief. They did not need to know or remember the explicit details of how he met his death; it was bad enough that he died violently in another land. He let the man know that those responsible had been taken care of; there was no need for revenge – it had been taken.

The undertaker, though shocked, understood what Asami was saying and agreed with him. The mafia was strong in that area of Italy and the wording from Asami emitted all the signs of one from such a background. He swore that no mention would be made of the condition of the body and he would see to the arrangements personally; he gave his word that no one else would be involved.

The hardest thing to do was to empty Kirishima's apartment; Asami had handled that personally. With the mental state Kirishima was in there was no taking him back there. They had lived there too long; the chance of a relapse once he set foot in the apartment was too high. The apartment was in an older building so Asami moved everyone out, bought the place, had it leveled, and created a small park in its place. In truth it was to be a memorial to Dante, especially if Kirishima ever tried going back there. He would only find peace and calm, like when Dante was alive. Asami had everything packed and stored, in case Kirishima ever wanted anything from the place, either in the near or distant future. He would move Kirishima in with him until he was strong enough to find himself another place and start his life over – without Dante.

He had to carefully plan how to handle Kirishima. He was an innocent abruptly dumped into the icy waters of the Japanese underworld. He knew that Kirishima had only guessed at the other side of Asami's business so there was limited acceptance of that aspect. On the record the Asami Kirishima knew ran a string of nightclubs for which he kept meticulous books. No one could find a whisper of corruption in any of his work, and his skill as an MBA kept him up on the laws that govern the business world.

But now his dark side had emerged when he killed the attacker. No, he hadn't just killed him, he executed him gangland style. Asami didn't think that the old Kirishima would ever surface again. Too much had been placed on his shoulders, too heavy a burden had been given him to carry.

It took over a month for the injuries to his eyes to heal, and then he needed to be fitted for corrective lenses. The first time he put on the glasses he cried; the fact that he needed them brought back the events that took place in the warehouse, both to him and Dante. This was going to be a long, uphill battle to bring Kirishima back.

The nightmares were the worst. At first it was almost nightly, and Kirishima would refuse to sleep; they finally had to sedate him to get him to rest.

The doctors did what they could for him, but no one could erase the events that took place in the warehouse. The medications were pretty heavy at first, and they had to keep track of what he took due to the fact that they were very addictive. But those drugs were the only thing that kept Kirishima functioning, and then only barely.

Asami was handling some demons of his own and purposely had the warehouse burn until it was entirely destroyed, and made sure a case of fireworks was included in the blaze to placate the insurance company and the police. There would be no warehouse #4 ever again. Perhaps the Japanese superstition of the number four being unlucky was well founded[1]. Shipping storage containers were put in its place, named for flowers rather than numbered; there was to be no #4 anything on his dock. He wanted anything directly related to Dante or his death to be removed from existence so Kirishima would never be allowed to inadvertently stumble upon a place that would dredge up that horrific evening.

#=#=#=#=#

Kirishima was starting to level out a bit, nowhere near normal, but he could get through the day without breaking down. He had just finished making dinner for the two of them when he suddenly spoke.

"Teach me to handle a gun."

Taken by surprise by his request Asami stared at Kirishima in disbelief, afraid that he might be suicidal. "What? Why?"

"I don't want to be defenseless ever again. I know what you do and what you are. I can accept that. So allow me to be your bodyguard. You saved my life; it is now yours to command, I give it freely since I have no other reason to live. The new guy, Suoh, can teach me self-defense; he seems to be a master at that.

"Kei! That's not the way you should be thinking right now."

"No, I've thought enough. This past year and a half I've worked with you, seen what you do, how you handle things. From the beginning I've known that you weren't just the successful legitimate businessman that you portray yourself; the dead gangster in that alley was all the proof I needed. I've also known about your other 'investments' for quite some time. I've seen the books. Just the fact that I found them should give you a good reason to find a better accountant, and I'm volunteering. You handle the people; I'll handle the paperwork and the legalities. I'll back you up, with firepower if necessary. I saved you once, I can do it again. We can work well together – we have for the past year and a half, although on a more one-sided arrangement. Right now I'm guilty by association so don't lay the 'you're just an innocent employee' excuse on me. Please, give me a reason to go on living."

Asami put his hand on Kirishima's shoulder. "Do you realize what you are asking for? What kind of life you are stepping into? The dangers involved?"

Kirishima stood tall and answered Asami with strength in his voice. "What do I have to live for anymore? I'll take my chances with you, Ryuu. I can kill, you know that. If I die it doesn't matter. I'll just have the death that I shouldn't have escaped six months ago."

Asami could tell by the look in his eyes that there was no dissuading him from his decision. To him, this was the only sensible answer to living the rest of his life without Dante. If he were to put himself in danger it didn't matter. No one would cry when he was gone.  
#=#=#=#=#

[1] The number four is considered inauspicious because it is pronounced the same as the word for death (shi).

TBC


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kei has been a cold, emotionless being for nine years, but something about Koh is melting his icy exterior.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentioned characters other than my original character are the property of Yamane Ayano. She graciously allows us to play with them.

**Chapter 7**  
  
Koh had invited Aki and Kei over for dinner and a session of Call of Duty, since Asami was out of town again and both were available. Takato was busy with his family and couldn't make it so dinner went well; Kei had brought enough sushi for 10 people and most of it was gone.  
  
Aki had to go to the bathroom and when he came out he saw Koh and Kei on the sofa, holding hands. He stood in the doorway watching the two of them talk, his heart hurting for the familiarity they had. Kei held one of Koh's hands, rubbing his thumb over the back of his hand. Eye contact was never broken, the smiles were true and honest. He couldn't recall ever being in that kind of situation with Asami. It started with fondling and ended in bed. As he felt the tears building in his eyes he muttered, "I've gotta go." He grabbed his jacket as he passed behind the sofa and ran out of the apartment.

#=#=#=#=#

  
Kirishima and Asami had just finished with the monthly reports for the legitimate night club business, and Kirishima decided that now was a good time to broach the subject of Aki's odd behavior from the other night.  
  
"Ryuu,I know I promised never to interfere in your affairs, but you need to pay a bit more attention to Aki, and I don't mean in bed. The young man loves you but he's not getting any return for that love. "  
  
Asami glared at Kirishima. "What we do is none of your business. I don't interfere with you and Koh."  
  
"Dammit Ryuu, after just seeing me holding hands with Koh and talking he left in tears! I had Koh talk to him – he's jealous of our relationship. Evidently you're only using him as a sex toy? You fuck him and send him home? You don't ever take him anywhere, not even to dinner? I realize that with your position you can't go certain places without risks, but what the hell is wrong with you – you're treating him like a common rent boy! He's this close to leaving you forever. Do you want that?"  
  
Asami was getting angry. "He can't leave – I won't let him leave. He belongs to me."  
  
Kirishima was now just as angry. "The hell he won't. He's been talking with Fei Long, and if he helps Aki leave you you'll never find him, no matter how hard and long you look. And that last comment of yours is why he's considering leaving. He's not a possession! You have ingrained in him that he is of no use to you other than as a sex outlet."  
  
"Have you finished Kei?" snarled Asami.  
  
"Yes, Ryuu, I have. But think about what you're doing to him, what you've done, and what you are about to lose."  
  
When Kirishima closed the door as he left the room he heard Asami's whiskey glass hit the wall and shatter. You're just hurting yourself Ryuu. You love him but won't tell him. You're breaking his heart. He is willing to give up his life's dream for you if you would just say you love him. What will you do when he's gone?

#=#=#=#=#

  
"I know that you love when I do this to you," he crooned as he slid one hand down the back of Aki's jeans while nibbling on his left ear. "You love the way I make you feel."  
  
With tears streaming down his face Aki, cried, "Do I? All you do is have sex with me when you want. I thought that after Hong Kong there was hope. On the yacht I felt that there was something like love between us. But now we’re back to you capturing me and fucking me senseless, only to let me go until the next time you need release. I love the sex, don't get me wrong, but I don't want just that anymore. I want to be someone important to you, not just a handy on-call prostitute. Sex is your answer to everything." Aki hung his head, sobbing. "Do you even understand any of this?"  
  
Aki pushed away from Asami. He buttoned his jeans, grabbed his jacket, and headed for the door. "Goodbye Mr. Asami. It's been, but I just don't know what," and he slammed out of the penthouse.  
  
Aki was still crying when the elevator arrived. Asami's guards looked surprised and cautiously watched as he entered the elevator, hitting the ground floor button with his fist. Realizing that Akihito had only arrive about 15 minutes ago the one commented, "Trouble in paradise?" while the other shrugged, mumbling in reply, "Guess so."  
  
Asami sat on the sofa unfazed by Akihito's outburst. He'd be back in a day or so. If not, he'd have one of his men find him and bring him back.  
  
After six days he sent some men out specifically to find Akihito. No one had seen him. He hadn't returned to his apartment. In fact, the men he sent out to check his apartment phoned back that the place was empty and up for rent. Angered, Asami then personally contacted Koh and Takato to see if they knew where he was. They were just as much in the dark as Asami, as were his parents. They had received a call from him about a week ago but nothing out of the ordinary was discussed.  
  
Asami was still more angry than worried, but he went directly to the magazine where Akihito had been working and they knew nothing. Mitarai seemed pleased that Takaba was gone because he was now the top dog in the photography department. Asami held his temper and didn't mop the floor with him although he really did want to at least knock him out.  
  
Takaba had vanished. Kirishima's words returned like a knife in his heart: _He's been talking with Fei Long, and if he helps Aki leave you'll never find him, no matter how hard or how long you look_.  
  
 _How can Akihito be gone? He is my lover. I wouldn't call him my lover if there weren't any feeling there, would I? What is a lover? Someone who warms your bed willingly? Someone who'll wake up to make you dinner at 3AM? Someone I don't want to leave me? Could I admit to Akihito that I love him? Crime lords can't have those types of feelings – crime lords are cold and callous and unfeeling, otherwise we could never function. Lovers are an unacceptable risk for people like me._  
  
 _But surely Akihito has realized that I have feelings for him, that I care about him, doesn't he? I rescued him every time he got into trouble. I watch over him and his friends to keep them safe. What more does he want from me? Words aren't necessary; they don't carry any importance to a relationship. I give him the sex he desires and he always comes back_.  
  
 _Except for this time…_.  
  
It had now been three months since Akihito had removed himself from Asami's life. The first two months were filled with anger; everyone did all they could to avoid upsetting Asami at all costs. Even his enemies knew that something was amiss and had angered him; the retaliations were beyond what was necessary to get the point across. Now it had nearly grown into a full-fledged gang war. Asami was waging a personal war against anyone who stood in his way or that he felt had slighted him in any way, his anger fueled by the loss of Akihito. It had gotten to the point that he was getting careless. Kirishima and Suoh knew that something needed to be done, and quickly. The anger still remained but now the emptiness was starting to overpower those feelings. After another two months, Asami was a shadow of himself, just going through the motions of daily life. But the anger still ruled his reactions in the underworld, like it was their fault his Akihito was gone; perhaps in a way it was. His involvement with the underworld did put a crimp on his personal life, but he wasn't about to give it up – it was in his bloodstream and to abandon it now would mean his death.

#=#=#=#=#

  
Aki knew that he could never achieve his life's dream of being a criminal photographer, even now that he'd left Asami. Yes, he could try to continue but like before the news articles would be caught by Asami and buried and put to rest where they could never see the light of day ever again, and eventually through such stories Asami would be able to track him down and drag him back.  
  
Fei Long had arranged Aki to be set up as a private investigator under an assumed name in an area south of Tokyo, well under Asami's radar. Leave it to Fei to know exactly where Asami's influence was the weakest. Akihito may not be getting the high level criminals that he wanted, but at least he was getting some of the lower, more numerous, less notorious but more dangerous gangsters off the streets. Fei had arranged for several of his people to be included as 'employees' of the agency, so that the cases he cleared weren't all in his name. The agency had a spectacular reputation, and if and when Asami should come sniffing around Fei knew he would have to move Akihito to another area with another name, while leaving his people in charge. The arrangement wasn't really to Aki's liking, but it was better than hiding as a nobody in a foreign country. Fei had offered to set him up in one of his many country homes he had scattered across northern China, and while Aki was grateful for the offer he insisted that he continue to work. He was not someone who could just do nothing all day. After several discussions on the matter, Fei finally accepted that Akihito needed to work to keep his mind off other things, and in particular, a certain crime lord.

#=#=#=#=#

  
One of Fei Long's men came into the office, announcing a not totally unexpected guest; Fei had been following the reports of his movements in Hong Kong.  
  
"Asami, what do I owe the pleasure of this visit? Do you need some assistance with something? I did hear a rumor that there seems to be a certain someone you are desperately trying to locate. Why? Has he finally come to his senses and left you?" The laughter was barely hidden in Fei's voice.  
  
Asami strode over to stand in front of the large desk. "Where's Akihito? I know you are hiding him."  
  
"You've lost him again? Tsk-tsk. Which crime lord did you anger this time?"  
  
Asami was very quickly losing his temper, and slammed his hands down on the front of the desk. "I want him back Fei. I need him."  
  
A more serious tone entered Fei's voice, tinged with anger. "You need him? For what? As someone you can fuck senseless when you have a bad day? You can always go out and get a rent boy for that. You don't want anyone to love you. Or, more importantly, you don't want to love anyone. I've seen people with commitment issues before, but you are in a class by yourself."  
  
Tamping down his anger Asami tried again. "Tell me where he is. I won't hurt him; I love him and I need to bring him back, by my side, where he belongs."  
  
Fei narrowed his eyes, doubting every word Asami said. "Ah, but perhaps he no longer needs you. Akihito cannot afford to be played anymore. His heart has been wounded by you almost beyond repair. You say that you love him, but have you ever told him that? I think not. You are no good for him; you can only do him more harm than good at this point. Don't bother coming to me to clean up your failed romances. You made your bed, now lie in it – you only have yourself to blame for his absence. Right now I have other business to attend to that is more important than your sexual needs; please leave the premises before I call my guards." Fei opened one of the folders on his desk and ignored the fact that Asami was still in the room.  
  
Asami barely contained his anger. It would not bode well to lose his temper in Baishe headquarters, but Fei was intentionally aggravating him. Grinding his teeth he uttered, "I want him back, tell him that," and headed for the exit.  
  
Fei lifted his gaze to watch Asami storm out of the room. Smiling, he thought to himself, _Oh, you've got it bad. A bit longer and we'll have you on your knees, unless you do something stupid_."  
  
#=#=#=#=#  
  
Asami was tired. The meetings had gone on for hours too long and his head ached from all the useless chatter the other businessmen thought was terribly important to impart to him firsthand. He just wanted to take a shower and try to get some sleep. 'Try' being the operative word. He hadn't had a good night's sleep since Akihito left. The dark circles under his eyes were testimony to that fact, as well as the very short fuse on his temper.  
  
Suoh took up his position by the door and acknowledged Kirishima with a nod as he moved to join him after Asami entered the penthouse. Each gave the other a knowing look and hoped all would go well.  
  
The small foyer light dimly lit the entrance to the penthouse as Asami slid off his shoes, then headed for the bar to pour a much needed bourbon. But halfway there he sensed that he wasn't alone. Carefully drawing his gun he spun to face the figure seated on his couch, now identifiable since either Yoh or another of his trusted guards had turned on one of the small lamps in the room.  
  
"Fei Long, what brings you here? I am assuming that this was arranged with Suoh and Kirishima's knowledge." Resetting the safety he re-holstered his gun.  
  
"Correct to a point; I arranged it." replied the second figure who was now stepping from the shadows into the light.  
  
"Akihito!"  
  
"I prefer Takaba-san from you, if you please. Were you headed for a drink? Shall I get if for you? You must be missing your maid service. I'll willingly treat you this time." Akihito walked to the bar and looked through the stocked bottles. "Fei, there is an excellent rice wine here – oh , Ginjo no less – would you like to try some?"  
  
With a wry smile on his face, Fei replied, "Yes, Aki, that sounds good. I trust that you remember my tastes." Fei watched as Asami's eyes reacted to his use of Aki's first name. This time Fei was the one who smirked.  
  
Aki walked to the couch and handed Fei his wine glass, then moved toward Asami and handed him the rocks glass containing the bourbon. "Neat, like you prefer it. Like everything else in your life." Aki turned and sat on the couch next to Fei. "You can sit if you like, but not near me. The armchair over there will do."  
  
Moving to the chair he asked, "What do you want?" before stiffly seating himself. The tone was gruff but his eyes told a different story. He wanted to grab Akihito and hold him, but the silver glint coming from Fei's sleeve told him it would be foolish to try.  
  
"What, you don't want to know how your supposed lover has been doing?" Akihito asked in a feigned distraught attitude. "I guess I really do know where I stand with you – out in the cold." This time the tone had the edge of hurt seeping through.  
  
Asami started to rise from the chair. "Aki…."  
  
"Call me Takaba-san! Don't ever call me Akihito again," snarled Akihito, as Fei placed his drink on the table and instantly produced a beautiful jewel encrusted silver dagger in his left hand, directly pointed toward Asami. Another less fancy but equally deadly throwing dagger appeared like magic in his other hand, also aimed toward Asami.  
  
Holding his hands in a submissive position Asami retook his seat. "All right, I understand. I'll remain in my chair." He took another swallow of his drink before continuing. "You seem to have picked up some rather shady friends since you left." A quick glance in Fei's direction confirmed that he had not yet sheathed his weapons.  
  
"Maybe it's courtesy of the previous company I kept. It was due to you that we were introduced." Turning to face Fei he calmly replied, "Please put your weapons away. I do believe he will listen to us peacefully for now. We all know that you can quickly retrieve them should it become necessary."  
  
Fei acquiesced to Aki and in one-upmanship stated sternly to Asami, "Make no mistake, I will defend Akihito from you regardless of causing any danger to your person."  
  
Asami saw the jeweled dagger return to its hiding place in Fei's sleeve, but the throwing dagger had already been hidden back to wherever it had been summoned from.  
  
Akihito's eyes burned holes in Asami's heart. "Words cannot be taken back, be they truth or lies. Once spoken, they will be remembered most often as truth. But when they are discovered to be lies, no amount of apologies can take them back, make them hurt less, or have them disappear from our memories. You reveled in the fact that you could embarrass me regularly, in front of anyone. That hurt, and doesn't say anything nice about your feelings for me. You can tell your business rival that you love me, but yet you say nothing to me. So what am I to believe? Since I am the one who is supposed to know your feelings the best, and I haven't ever been told that I am in any way special to you, I'd have to say your words are lies. Or worse, just spoken to enlist people into tracking and finding me, to bring me forcibly back to your side, like I understand you tried with Fei Long."  
  
"Why can't I call you Ryuichi? I try and it doesn't come out. I'll tell you why. There is nothing between us saying that you want me to love you, nothing to make me feel that I am loved in return. Not once have you asked me to call you Ryuichi, not once! Yet you have the audacity to call me Akihito, like you've earned the right to use my first name. No more. I thought that we had something once, a glimmer of hope, but even that was a lie."  
  
Aki's hands were clenched in fists, shaking in anger and frustration. "Thanks to you I gave up my lifetime dream, compromising it to something unidentifiable just to make a living, just so I didn't have to involve you in any scandals, not that you would have allowed it. But that's how much I love you. But you, you don't care as long as I'm available to warm your bed when you want. There is no pleasure from that type of relationship. Even if I tried to start over with you it would be just the same, no change. You are a selfish man with no respect for anyone, no matter how much they love you or care for you. You take what you want and discard the rest."  
  
Asami was not used to the tongue lashing he was receiving. Aki definitely had the upper hand here, and although he had the right to do this Asami didn't like it. "Have I not protected you, come for you when you were in danger? Even your friends have benefited from my protection."  
  
Akihito just glared at him. "You came for me because your bed was empty."  
  
The words went straight to his heart like a dagger. Asami looked Akihito straight in the eyes; in a sad voice he said, "That's not true." Setting his drink aside, Asami knelt on the ground in a dogeza position, his head on the floor between his hands, in front of Aki. "I beg forgiveness," came the muffled words from the floor; he did not move.  
  
He heard Aki laugh, the sound sending waves of pain through his body, yet he still didn't move.  
  
"You think I am foolish enough to fall for that? You've never apologized for anything in your whole life. It's a shame that I don't have a camera with me. This would be a great farewell shot to remember you by – the all-powerful Asami-sama begging on his knees. Try something else."  
  
He heard both Aki and Fei get up and cross the room, but he still didn't move even when he heard the door open and close. He remained there, his tears pooling on the floor.  
  
I never thought that I hurt him that deeply. I'm sorry Akihito, so very sorry. Can I ever make it up to you?  
  
As he stood outside the door to the penthouse Aki's strength gave out and tears formed in his eyes. Kirishima took him to his office to let him sit down for a few minutes. Fei followed close behind, upset that his friend had not taken the meeting well, even though he expected this result. He locked the door behind them in case Asami should come out for some reason. He did not want Asami seeing Akihito in this condition; it would undo what they had planned.  
  
Kirishima had managed to find some drinkable coffee somewhere and set the cup before Akihito. He weakly answered "thanks" and drank about half of it.  
  
"He looks like hell. Did I do that to him? I just wanted to take him in my arms and tell him that everything would be all right again, that I'd come back. Am I really doing the right thing?"  
  
Both Kirishima and Fei said "yes" at the same time. Kirishima continued the conversation. "He has to admit to himself what he knows to be true, that he loves you. But he is too stubborn to admit something so deeply rooted in him, and I don't know why. Until he does there is no way the two of you can continue to be together."  
  
Fei added to the subject. "Since you left he's become much more ruthless than normal; he's doing things that can cause his downfall. I've been watching him, and if he isn't careful he'll be in a lot of trouble before he knows it. His punishments and retaliations are much stronger than they should be; his competitors smell a chance to take over a corner or two of his territory by riling him up on one front and working unnoticed in another to undermine him. He needs to calm down and start thinking rationally again.  
  
After Akihito had finally calmed down, he and Fei left for the hotel where they were staying. Kirishima knocked at Asami's door but got no answer. Not sure of what to do he decided he would wait until morning and try again. On his orders a shift of guards came on duty and he told them to notify him if Asami should leave the building. He knew that Asami would call him if anything important came up. Hoping that he had all the loose ends taken care of, Kirishima left for home.

#=#=#=#=#

  
The tears had finally stopped flowing, but he felt terribly wrung out. A shower was in order then to bed. Perhaps he could get a few hours of sleep to help ease his anguish. The water felt good on his back but did nothing for his unpleasant mood. He thought of the many times he stood here with Akihito before him, in his arms – he missed that. Akihito would lean back against him, rubbing himself against Asami, his hands reaching behind and caressing Asami's buttocks and pulling him closer. He remembered the feeling vividly – and suddenly reached out to turn off the hot water, leaving himself standing in a shower of icy water to chase away the memory.  
  
The bed was no different than the shower. For hours he flipped and flopped, every turn recalling another memory of Akihito's warmth. Watching him sleep for an hour before finally drifting off himself. Waking up to find Akihito's arms around him, clinging tightly like a child to a favorite stuffed animal. Having Akihito's scent fill his senses when he awoke, and burying his nose in his hair to take in as much as he could before Akihito would awaken and bolt from the bed. Coming home at 4 AM and finding dinner ready when he came in, and Akihito sitting with him while he ate.  
  
The memories rolled on, as did the clock. It was now dawn and he hadn't slept a wink. Grabbing his robe and slippers he headed for the kitchen. He had just finished brewing the coffee when Kirishima arrived. Both were surprised to see each other, though for different reasons.  
  
Asami looked at Kirishima and spoke harshly, "If you weren't so good a friend and employee I'd kill you for what you did."  
  
Kirishima spoke gently in return, "Someone has to look out for you since you've chased away Akihito. He was doing a good job; too bad you didn't acknowledge it."  
  
Asami sneered. "Don't remind me. All I've done all night is remember the good things that I never saw before. He really does love me, doesn't he?"  
  
Kirishima glanced at Asami slyly, "As much as you love him."  
  
Moving to the counter he poured coffee for the two of them. Handing a cup to Kirishima he said, "Go ahead, I know you want to say I told you so."  
  
Kirishima just smiled knowingly and took the coffee.  
  
Asami looked back at Kirishima. "I guess I do love him, don't I? Why didn't I see it before? I owe him an apology that I don't think can ever be adequate for what I've done to him. After all the things I remembered last night one old adage comes to mind, _'If you love something set it free. If it comes back it’s yours. If not, it was never meant to be_ '. I have to set him free. I've kept him caged for too long. It's not a perfect apology but it will have to suffice. I cannot undo the past. Can you contact him so I can talk to him? I will have to learn to live without him; another of life's lessons that has left a deep notch on my psyche. A few more like this one and my soul will be in shreds, what's left of it that is."  
  
Several days later Kirishima got back to Asami with a time to meet with Takaba. He was willing to meet with him in his penthouse, but Kirishima would be with him for support. Asami agreed.  
  
The appointed time came and found Asami pacing in his living room. For once he didn't have on a suit, he wore a plain pair of slacks and a pullover knit shirt. Kirishima, of course, wore his normal black suit while Akihito was casual as usual – jeans and a T-shirt.  
  
Asami walked up to Takaba, standing before him he started to speak. "How do I start?" Asami looked very uncomfortable.  
  
"I dragged you down to my level and expected you to be content. I didn't listen to what you had to say. I didn't see what my actions did to you, how they were eroding your spirit. I see now that I never should have touched you, no matter what your camera saw. I realize too late that we…." Asami shifted his position and ran a hand through his hair.  
  
"I never saw all the little things that made you special. I never saw that I was special to you. I only saw what I wanted to see, and that was a willing bed partner. The sex overpowered everything else. I had no time for anything else with you. For that I am deeply sorry." Asami took Takaba's hand in his.  
  
"I take back all the claims I made on you, you are free to live your life as you wish. I will not follow you, track you, stalk you, or try to see you again. If you should ever want to see me just let me know. I will make time to be with you – the same if you should ever need help of any kind. Please believe me, I'm serious on all points." Asami then bowed to Takaba.  
  
With tears in his eyes he acknowledged the words Asami had spoken and turned to go. When he had almost reached the door and Kirishima was about to open it he heard Asami speak, this time in a softer tone.  
  
"Just remember – you take my heart with you."  
  
At first he wasn't sure he'd heard correctly so he turned back to face Asami, his heart in his throat.  
  
"What did you just say?"  
  
Asami stood there like a child that had just been disciplined. "Nothing. I won’t say it again."  
  
Now he knew that he had heard correctly. Akihito strode back to Asami and stood directly in front of him. "The hell you won't, bastard! If you can say it to my back you can say it to my face." Takaba grabbed the front of Asami's sweater and pulled him closer. "Repeat what you said."  
  
Asami's golden eyes seemed dimmer than usual. "It's too late to say it now."  
  
Takaba's temper was on the rise. "Let me be the judge of that. What did you mean, I'm taking your heart?"  
  
"I do care about you. I always have and always will. I just never realized that it meant that much to you to hear it in words."  
  
"That's because you never listened to a word I said. You were too busy being in charge."  
  
Asami could no longer look Takaba in the eyes. "Yes, I have to admit that you are correct on that count."  
  
Takaba loosened his grip on the sweater. "We need to talk. Really talk. About us, as people. You know all about me, but I know less than nothing about you other than your nightclubs and illegal underground dealings. That's only the image you project for other people. I want to know what's in here." Takaba began lightly poking Asami's chest just over his heart. "Where did you grow up? What were you like? Any siblings? Did you have a juvie record too?" Takaba moved his hand from poking Asami in the chest to grabbing his genitalia and squeezing. "There's more to you than a dick; I know all about that part. Tell me about the rest of you. Let me in; just a little. Allow a little trust here; it won't hurt and it just might help."  
  
Asami lightly laughed, pulling Takaba's hand away from his crotch. It would cause problems if he held on much longer. "Perhaps I can tell you a little bit. Shall we make some coffee to go with the conversation?"  
  
Takaba shuffled his feet a bit placed a hand on his stomach. "Um, I'm really hungry and I could use some food. I've been so uptight lately with everything that's been going on that I haven't eaten much. What'cha got in the fridge?"  
  
Asami smiled. That was his Akihito – he was back. "I really don't know. Kirishima keeps bringing in bags of food but recently I haven't eaten much either."  
  
"Well, how about for starters we go make dinner together? I know you can cook a little."  
  
Neither man noticed the smile that Kirishima had on his face as he exited the penthouse.  
  
Akihito was busy with a bunch of vegetables and a knife, chopping and dicing a variety for an omelet. Asami was occupied with making a pot of coffee for them, and had just finished grinding the beans.  
  
"Asami, get me one of those little hot peppers in the fridge, will ya?"  
  
There was an unexpected silence before he felt Asami's arms circle his waist. "May I call you Akihito now?"  
  
Putting the knife down he turned and looked into those golden eyes. With the shyness of a teenager he replied, "Yes."  
  
He gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead. "Thank you. Then ask me again, Akihito."  
  
He knew what he was saying, without any words. "Please get me a pepper... Ryuichi."  
  
Placing a light kiss on his forehead he replied, "Certainly Akihito. Red or green?"

TBC


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kei has been a cold, emotionless being for nine years, but something about Koh is melting his icy exterior.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mentioned characters other than my original character are the property of Yamane Ayano. She graciously allows us to play with them.

Chapter 8  
  
Several months had passed and Takaba and Asami were getting along much better than they ever had. Akihito still refused to move in with Asami, no matter how much he begged and pleaded. He stated that he had to work and living with him would be detrimental to his employment, not to mention his back. Asami tamped down his temper and pouted, but realized that Takaba was right. If Takaba were to be available 24/7 he would never get to work, and more than likely they would fall into the same routine that caused their problems to begin with.  
  
Asami was learning all sorts of new things in this new relationship they had. They had spent the New Year together at an onsen, even going to the local temple to pray together. While there, Asami realized that he enjoyed being alone with Akihito; that by only being near him occasionally it made the experience sweeter, deeper, and more enjoyable. The sex was different too. They still got rough now and then but now Asami took more care not to overdo and injure Akihito. Once he had stopped taking out his frustrations through sex, it made a much more pleasant experience for the both of them.  
  
It had taken more time to straighten out the problems with his underground connections than it did to cause them, but by Golden Week everything was running on a smooth track again. He had gotten a room reserved at his favorite onsen for Kei and Koh. Kirishima had worked just as hard if not harder than Asami to straighten out all the problems and Asami felt that he could benefit from the short vacation. The man never took time off and with his new relationship with Koh Asami felt that he should take time to enjoy his new companion. Since Kirishima was finally opening up he didn't want to see it fail; Kirishima had paid enough dues in pain for several lifetimes.  
  
Unfortunately he had meetings scattered through the week; businessmen seemed to think only in terms of money. Though the more he thought about it that was the way he acted before Akihito. He now began to pity those men with their noses to the grindstone, never looking up to see what else existed in their worlds.  
  
Akihito was able to free up three days and Asami asked him if he would like to spend them at the penthouse. Although he would really have preferred to spend the holiday at the onsen he couldn't reschedule a few things, and the onsen was too far away to commute. He would be busy on two of those mornings with meetings, but he could cut them short and be able to spend some time alone with Akihito. Takaba had thought about it for a bit and decided that it might be nice for a change.  
  
Asami had dressed casually, plain slacks and a button-down shirt. He was checking out the look when Takaba arrived. Hearing the doorbell Asami hurried to answer the door. He felt like a teenager again – much like Kei had described about being with Koh. He'd been waiting as patiently as he could for Akihito to arrive and finally he was here.  
  
Opening the door he saw Takaba standing there, a wide grin on his face, his hair disheveled as usual, and a duffle bag thrown over one shoulder.  
  
"Hi! I'm here."  
  
Asami smiled warmly. "I keep telling you that you can use the key." He stood to the side to allow Takaba to enter.  
  
"Yeah, I know, but I kinda like being invited in, and it's a lot nicer than being dragged in by your goons. So where am I stashing my stuff? Your bedroom?" But Takaba was already headed for the room.  
  
Asami followed behind. "Can't we call it our bedroom? We do have a relationship going between us. And you do have some of your clothes stored here already, and your formal suits…."  
  
Tossing the duffle bag into the room to land on the floor approximately by his side of the bed he replied, "I don't want you to think that I'm going to move in with you any time soon. We've discussed this many times. Until we are both sure that things won't deteriorate like before it ain't gonna happen."  
  
From behind Asami put his arms around him. "Yes, but I have to keep asking, just in case you have a bit more faith in me and want to try."  
  
Worming his way out of Asami's hold after a quick kiss he headed for the kitchen. "So, are we doing for dinner, making to ourselves, take out, or just plain eating out?"  
  
"I thought for the first night we could eat in. You make a delicious hotpot, and I've got the makings. Kirishima made sure that I had enough food for at least three months before he left. There are a few bottles of a high quality sake in the fridge too.  
  
Takaba laughed. "I think you need to hire a cook. You always want me to cook when I come over. And yeah, Kirishima's a bit of a mother hen with the food. I've noticed that Koh is gaining a bit of weight. I know that Koh can't cook anything other than ramen so Kirishima must be a really good cook."  
  
Asami moved to the couch and sat down. "How much do you know about Kirishima?"  
  
Takaba stopped and turned toward Asami. "From him? Nothing, we don't speak very often other than daily greetings. From Koh? That the man has had a rough time of it. He saw his life mate killed and lives with the memory every day. I know it had to be bad because Koh won't even speak of what happened. But I'm not supposed to tell anyone. But then, you're not just anyone are you? Why do you ask?"  
  
"In order to determine whether I should answer your question about his abilities in the kitchen. After his lover's death…"  
  
Making sure they were talking about the same person Takaba interjected, "You mean Dante?"  
  
Asami gave him a sideways look. "Yes, Dante. Anyway, as I was saying, after his lover's death he lived with me for almost two years. I can attest to how well the man can cook."  
  
"You two go back together that far? No wonder you get along so well."  
  
There were other circumstances involved in the friendship."  
  
Takaba's new's scoop sense flared, and he moved to stand in front of Asami. "Such as?"  
  
Asami looked up and answered sharply, "That is not any of your business."  
  
Leaning forward and placing his hands on the back of the sofa to trap Asami between them he asked in an irritated tone, "What do you mean? You tease me with a great piece of information about the Great Asami-sama then don't expound on it. What happened to the 'open up a bit' and letting me know some of your secrets? I'm pretty sure it wouldn't make ground-breaking news if it got out – or would it?" Akihito had a very devilish look in his eyes at the moment.  
  
Asami studied Akihito. "Sorry to disappoint you but no, it wouldn't. I'm not saying any more." Seeing Akihito's pouting face he relented a bit. "All right, I'll give you this much – he saved my life, but you're not getting any more information than that. Even Kirishima doesn't know all the details." _Though he did getting pretty damned close in his assumptions._  
  
Taking advantage of Takaba's lack of concentration he pulled him down into his lap.  
  
"Now, how about a proper greeting for your lover? I haven't seen you for almost three weeks and I want at least something more than a quick peck on the cheek."  
  
Overcoming the surprise at being pulled down into his lap Takaba placed his arms around Asami's neck. "Missed me that much, eh? Then how about I give you a kiss to tide you over until after dinner?"  
  
Takaba then proceeded to assault Asami's mouth, forcing his way in and using all the tricks that Asami normally used on him. He finally broke the kiss by nipping at his lower lip several times and moving to his earlobes. He whispered, "I missed you too, Ryuichi," as he ran one hand under Asami's shirt.  
  
Not to be outdone, Asami's hands were on the move under Takaba's shirt at the moment. Every time Takaba nibbled on his earlobe he gave one of his nipples a tweak.  
  
Takaba had managed to unbutton Asami's shirt and was currently trailing his fingers up and down Asami's chest. "I don't think we're going to make it until after dinner."  
  
Asami had finished removing Takaba's shirt and was in the process of smothering his chest with love bites and kisses. Asami smiled, happy in the fact that for a change Takaba was calling the moves. "If you say so, Akihito. Dessert's first and you're it." The kisses continued down the front of Takaba.  
  
"And take-out for dinner. I'll be too tired to cook." Takaba stood and grabbed Asami's hand, pulling him toward the bedroom.  
  
The clothes had disappeared by the time they hit the bed.  
  
Each was equally turned on by what he was doing to the other and by what was being done to him.  
  
Asami had started toying with Takaba's pucker and suddenly loosed the solid flesh he had in his mouth. "You prepared yourself."  
  
Takaba released Asami and replied, "Of course. You don't think that you're the only one who wanted this. I've waited almost three weeks too." He then proceeded to continue sucking on Asami, exciting the man to a state of readiness while Asami began rimming him.  
  
Having managed to get Asami on his back Takaba took advantage of their positions and quickly spun around, now straddling and facing Asami.  
  
"Right where I want you," purred Takaba, leaning forward to rub their erections together. "This time I'll set the rules."  
  
Asami looked up into the lust-filled eyes that gazed down on him, knowing exactly what he wanted from him and was going to do. He ran his hands up Takaba's sides, watching those lustful eyes close and the head to lean back.  
  
"Do it. I want to watch." Asami's emotions were at an all-time high. Rarely did Takaba instigate their love making, so each time was extremely pleasurable. And to ride him on top of it made all the more special.  
  
Takaba's eyes refocused on Asami. The man was sex personified. Raising himself off of Asami he reached for their cocks, rubbing them together for a few moments before lining himself up with Asami's rock hard erection.  
  
Asami watched in fascination as Takaba slowly, erotically, impaled himself. When he thought that he had fully seated himself he felt another push, driving him deeper into Takaba. Both men were taken by surprise by the added depth of penetration and voiced the pleasure.  
  
"Akihito!" The feeling was ecstasy – and now Takaba had started to move, increasing the pleasure. Asami's fingers clenched at Takaba's thighs, moving upward to hold his ass as he began to thrust back, in time with Takaba's movement.  
  
Feeling the nearness of his orgasm Takaba moved his right hand to his cock, stroking and squeezing. The fingers of his left hand were braced on Asami's stomach. He felt Asami's hand slide around from his ass cheek to cover his hand. Together they worked him to release, with Asami's orgasm following very shortly.  
  
Takaba collapsed onto Asami, breathing hard and heavy. "Damn, Ryuichi, that felt good!"  
  
Asami turned a bit which moved Takaba to the mattress and began nuzzling his neck below the ears. "That was so good that I want more of you, Akihito."  
  
"Hnn," was all Takaba could reply, but it was a sufficient answer for Asami. They began again, this time with Takaba on his back.  
  
The grunts and groans and moans finally culminated in a joint orgasm between the two men. Now totally spent they lay beside each other entwined in each other's arms, trying to gain back some normalcy to their breathing and heartbeats.  
  
"So what are we going to do tonight? We've already had sex twice."  
  
"We'll think of something. For now I just want to kiss you," and Asami proceeded to cover Takaba's chest with kisses.  
  
Takaba propped himself up on one arm and looked Asami straight in the eyes. "How about we do a trial run?"  
  
Taken by surprise by the statement all Asami could utter was, "A trial run?"  
  
Laughing lightly Takaba clarified his statement. "I'll stay here on weekends, just weekends. Two days in a row, one night, and we'll see how long we can behave ourselves. If it looks like we're falling into the old routines I go back to coming here once or twice a month for a one night stay-over."  
  
Asami smiled, an honest smile. "I think we can handle it." After some additional cuddling the two managed to curl together and sigh happily. Unplanned by both, the men fell asleep for about an hour, waking up still wrapped in each other's arms and a sticky mess between them.  
  
"Wake up, we need a shower." Asami gave Takaba a gentle kiss and headed for the bathroom to start the shower running.  
  
A few minutes later Takaba followed, joining Asami in the warm water after doing the normal bathroom business. They assisted each other with shampooing and getting clean, and Asami helped Takaba clear himself of Asami's seed. They had a quick cuddle moment as the water rained over them in a final rinse, but it went no further than that. Now they could do things like that – sex, although welcome, was not the priority every time they touched.  
As he exited the shower to put on his robe Akihito realized that many of his personal things were already here – the toiletries, his robe, slippers were all handy in the bathroom. The closet had been rearranged to hold a few suits and dress clothes, while several changes of clothes were delegated to one drawer in the dresser. His favorite coffee mug was in the kitchen beside the coffee maker, as well as a week's worth of Pocky and ramen in the cupboard, courtesy of Kirishima.  
  
The changes that they had accomplished in the past six months had all been favorable. He honestly began to feel that they just might make it this time.  
  
#=#=#=#=#  
  
Koh was in the middle of working on a programming glitch when he felt his phone vibrate. He rarely got calls during the day, but he kept his phone with him and turned on vibrate just in case someone needed to get in touch with him.  
  
Taking his phone out he was surprised to see the name 'Asami' as the caller. He very rarely called, and usually to locate Kirishima for some odd reason or another. Moving out of the room and into the hallway he answered, "Hello, Fujioka here."  
  
The answering voice was definitely Asami, and it sounded serious. "Koh, good. I was hoping to catch you without Kirishima around. There is something that I need to tell you, to warn you about, that I forgot to mention when we met in my office."  
  
"The anniversary of Dante's death is next week, Tuesday. He will be a bit more distant for a while. He always goes to the park on that day. I don't know if you can persuade him, but see if you can go with him. With the changes that I've seen lately it may be beneficial for the both of you to go there together. "  
  
Koh thanked Asami for the information, telling him that he had noticed a change in his demeanor lately, and had wondered if it had anything to do with Dante. He explained that they were having dinner on Sunday and if there was a chance that Kei would mention the date then he would have the opportunity to request to go along.  
  
Asami wished him luck and said to do his best before ending the call.  
  
#=#=#=#=#  
  
Kei had prepared a simple meal of fried vegetables and tofu for the two of them but was very quiet during dinner. Whenever Koh tried to start a conversation Kei added little to it and the silence took over again. Finally Koh decided that he would just let Kei know that Asami had clued him in to the events of the coming week.  
  
"I understand your preoccupation with next Tuesday. If you weren't up to having dinner tonight you should have known that I would have agreed if you cancelled. Don't force yourself on my part." Koh stood and started taking the dishes to the kitchen.  
  
Kei looked very upset and a bit angry. "He told you?"  
  
Turning to face him he replied, "Yes, he felt that it was something that I should know about if I am going to understand what you are going through at this time. And I do understand that this is important to you, and I will do whatever is needed to help you through this."  
  
Kei sat silently looking at his new lover; Koh could tell that he was trying to make a decision about something. Finally he asked, "Then would you come with me on Tuesday?"  
  
Although it was very small, the park was beautiful. It was accessible from opposite sides; floral shrubs and bushes lined a meandering walkway that led to a center sculpture – a bronze G-clef about 2 meters high. Benches dotted the walk. The ground level lighting was made to look like music notes; the walkway was striped like a music scale, black stone inlaid in white concrete.  
  
They walked down the pathway together in silence, Kei lost in his thoughts and Koh hoping they weren't bad ones. Kei walked to the sculpture and laid the single red rose at its base. He knelt before the tribute to his fallen mate, head bowed, tears threatening to fall.  
  
Koh wasn't sure what to do. He wanted to go and put his arm around Kei, to assure him that it was all right to grieve in front of him, but he wasn't sure if the gesture would be accepted as such. Taking a chance, he walked to stand beside the kneeling man.  
  
Kei looked up at him with a look of thanks in his eyes, and his hand sought out Koh's. Koh then knelt beside Kei, refusing to leave go of his hand. They stayed that way for several minutes.  
  
Finally Kei spoke. "Asami was very correct in leveling the building. I could never have returned here if the building still stood, or if I had it would have been very detrimental to my mental stability. As it is I can stay here and recall good memories without visual reminders of the loss, though at times it has been painful.  
  
"This is a very special place and I'm glad that you came with me. This past is a part of me that you will have to deal with as long as we are together. You need to understand that I don't think less of you, but I cannot relinquish everything from my past. Dante was to be my future, but now he's gone and I've been guided to you. Can you accept that?"  
  
Koh looked directly at Kei. "Do you really think that I couldn't accept it? I know what he meant to you; he shared years of your life as a part of you. I cannot deny you that – I have no right to judge you on that. But you have decided to share your life with me now, to make me part of your life – part of your new life. I accept all of you."  
  
They spent an hour or so in the park before Kei indicated that he was ready to leave. Kei wanted to go somewhere bright and crowded so Koh suggested one of the arcades. It wasn't quite what Kei had expected as a place to go but once there he changed his mind about arcades. Koh had conned him into playing several of the new games that were out and the two of them managed to have a bit of fun. Noticing the time they found a quiet soba shop and had a light dinner before heading back to Kei's place.  
  
They had gotten back much later than they expected. Kei suggested that Koh stay the night, and Koh was in the mood to make love so this was a perfect opportunity. Neither of the men had to work the next day so they could enjoy the extra time together.  
  
They started with a shower that quickly turned into a joint hand job. Kei picked Koh up and carried him to the bed. He started with a few kisses and then trailed them down the Koh's chest and abdomen.  
  
When Kei settled between his legs and began licking him he let out a cry. Kei was very experienced in showering attentiveness on his lover, and Koh realized how fortunate he was. His skills paled compared to Kei; he felt embarrassed every time he tried to satisfy him. Kei never chided him though, and encouraged him with all his efforts. He realized that Koh was still learning what he liked and disliked.  
  
He worked on stretching Koh while he teased his cock without mercy. When he felt that Koh was getting close to releasing he coated himself with lube and carefully entered him.  
  
Koh was in heaven. The feelings that Kei could wring out of him were amazing. He never realized that sex could be so thrilling. Wrapping his legs around Kei's waist he tried to pull him closer, deeper into him.  
  
Kei looked down and smiled. He definitely had some strong feelings for this young man. It may not be love, but it had to be close to it.  
  
#=#=#=#=#  
  
Koh was awakened by the movement in the bed. Moonlight streamed into the room from the open window, falling on the moaning and thrashing of Kei's body. As Koh had feared the nightmare was beginning. In a way he was glad that he stayed over because he feared a nightmare might start.  
  
Summoning his courage he leaned over Kei and started kissing his face, his chest, his neck. "Shh, forget that – I'm here for you. Pay attention to what I'm doing; feel my kisses, feel my touch." He continued to kiss him while stroking his body, hoping to turn his mind from the debilitating details of the nightmare.  
  
In a weakened voice he heard Kei ask, "Innamorato?"  
  
A tear slid down Koh's cheek. "Yes, love, I'm here."  
  
Now fully awake, Kei rolled to his side and braced himself on one arm, the other reaching for Koh's face. "Koh? Tears? What happened, what's wrong?"  
  
A faint smile came to his face. "Happy tears. I broke through your nightmare."  
  
"What?"  
  
"You were starting to thrash about; that signals the start – I remember from before. So I started talking gently to you, kissing and touching you. Then you called me Innamorato."  
  
Kei hung his head, shame on his face. "I'm sorry. I didn't know that I did that, and it wasn't intentionally done to hurt you." He ran his hand up and down Koh's side, hoping to soothe his lover.  
  
"I'm not upset. The fact that you could mistake my attentions for those of your first love pleases me somehow. My actions pulled you away from that harrowing nightmare and back to me."  
  
Kei moved to press against Koh with his body. "Back to my Koibito."  
  
Koh smiled, "Yes, my Koibito," and he pulled Kei over to initiate a very passion-filled kiss, which Kei gladly returned and intensified.  
  
Their interrupted sleep would not return for several hours.  
  
  
  
 _こいびと (romaji koibito)_  
Japanese [Noun]  
恋人: a lover, a sweetheart; a boyfriend, a girlfriend


End file.
